The songs that define our love (2)
by Escritora submarina
Summary: With the entry of Aihara Kotoko into his life, his world changed completely. Now that Irie Naoki will enter the university, he will not only have to deal with his feelings, but with a new suitor, the pressures of being Pandai's boss, and a new love rival. Can he face the new stage of his life? (2nd part of "Songs that define our love")
1. Prologue

The decisions could take different paths to meet their basic needs, for some studying to be the best was a virtue considered by the outstanding students of their generation, for others dedicating themselves to a sport was an alternative if they were not so prominent in the area of studying. In short, an infinite number of decisions could be executed according to the capabilities with which the person was granted.

Irie Naoki, was born endowed with endless talents both in the area of studies, as in sports, and in everything that was planned to perform. A totally virtuous and attractive genius.

Many girls were dying to have him as a boyfriend, however, he was already looking at a person who he cataloged as "special" and every day he tried by all means to approach her without being too obvious.

Accustomed to being treated as a God, he found it difficult in being a simple person and in any case, consider himself as someone capable of winning the heart of the girl who had him upside down. That girl who drove him crazy, she put him on the verge of lowering his guard, he was also daydreaming and thinking about her daily, which made his heart pound strongly from his chest and to feel perfect at her side. That girl was Aihara Kotoko.

He hoped that in the new stage they would both enter, he would have better luck than the previous one.

Perhaps fate would continue to hinder him to the road of love.

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**P.S.** The second part starts today! I'm excited to publish the second part of "The songs that define our love" and thank you so much for the previous reviews they have help me to continue publishing the story and now with the second part I hope that it will be another stage for the characters so stay tuned for more.


	2. University students

It was his first day as a university student, he received it with an internal smile, while opening the window of his room letting in the warm rays of the sun. The morning promised to be good, meaning that his day would still be a very good one.

He dressed in a black suit with navy blue stripes and a light blue tie, brown hair swayed with the inertia of the spring weather; the cherry blossoms bloomed, the warm wind hugged the city of Tokyo; fashion was in short clothes and light colors.

He took one of his cassettes to listen in the recess or on the road in the subway, he took the Actually from Pet Shop Boys. His favorite album.

The muscle relaxation device was stored in its box because he wasn't armed with courage to open it because the aroma of it was stored in the box and would disappear if the device was put on.

The book of lyrics was kept in silent, not taking it into account to read it, preferring to read the medicine book he liked best.

He would go for a short path with Kotoko before she took her route with Chibi had breakfast appeased. That dog was chasing her when she went anywhere; he turned out to be very attached to Kotoko and Yuuki.

His family didn't dare to send Chibi to the dog pound, so they decided to adopt him as their own.

He was having rice with Nattou for breakfast, he noticed that Kotoko was dressed causally (nothing to do with her formal clothes). Red knee-high pants, a red polo shirt and black stripes, a baseball cap.

"Are you going to the kindergarten with those clothes?"

"And you to a funeral?" She defended tricky, looking at him gracefully.

"So early and having a couple fight" His mother snorted enthusiastically.

"Of course not" She replied, taking a large sip of juice.

* * *

"I can't believe we're going to the university" She exclaimed, with both hands on her cheeks in broad smile.

"Hey, your bike" He warned, seeing that the bike fell to the ground, hitting the handlebars sideways; she hunched over to grab her daily means of transportation. "Silly" He scoffed, smiling wickedly.

"Oh, thanks for letting me know" She laughed mischievously, moving the bicycle.

"Pay more attention to your actions" He said assertively, trying to prosecute her for better performance in terms of her attention to her surroundings, in order to avoid those scenarios in which things fall or crashes into a pole or a tree.

"Eh, yes" She nodded selflessly, looking down at her walkman. As soon as she got distracted, he heard a noise behind him, meaning she had crashed into something.

He turned to see, and yes, she had crashed into the lamppost with the entire forehead red from the blow and the bicycle was counterweighting her belly. "Auch" She rubbed her forehead, narrowing her eyes in pain.

"Didn't I tell you?" He remembered shaking his head negatively. "Are you sure you don't go to the kindergarten?" He ironized the subject. The grin of mockery threatened to appear on his face. He turned his head to the other side.

"Hey!" She yelled indignantly.

He laughed inside, covering his mouth with his hand in order to not be so obvious with his action.

His adventures in university were just beginning at her side…

* * *

Taking the road to the University, she separated from him to take her own route on bicycle, having said goodbye he went to the subway putting on his headphones to listen to the cassette that he bought.

Within his affable thought with music, the road was fast and he was blinking at the entrance of Tonan University. He was impressed to see the large number of students from different areas and different clothing compared to his own, mostly they dressed as Kotoko had done.

It didn't take long to find the physics and engineering building. A narrow white building, full of men and a few women.

Entering the building a tight smell surrounded the entrance hall, the witness outside was the same as inside, the people of that place wore the same style of clothing he wore. He carried the portfolio in his hand where inside were: the walkman, a cassette, his headphones, notebooks and writing utensils to use in class.

He looked for his classroom, which was easy to find thanks to his great sense of orientation and space; entering the classroom 102 some eyes fell on him, the murmurs and early whispering about his physique did change much even in university.

He put on his mask of coldness and indifference and sat in the window seat in front of the teacher.

To make matters worse, the benches were placed in semicircular tables where four students occupied a respective place; a dark-haired girl sat next to him—the same girl who told him where the university hospital was— he recalled the physical features of the girl. Stunning curls by her waist, the elegant smell of roses, a well-formed and fit body, perfectly made up and safe and elegant attitude.

Quite the opposite of Kotoko.

"The rumors are true" She said sarcastically, leaning back in her seat to see him better. "You are more attractive in person than in the photos, Irie Naoki"

"And you are?" He articulated perplexed at the security manifested in the dark-haired girl. "I saw you on the day of the Tokyo University exam"

"I see you have a photographic memory" She commented, leaning toward him peacefully. Almost gracefully. "Matsumoto Yuuko" She extended her hand with elongated nails painted bright red. He accepted the gesture, suspicious.

"My name you already know" He pointed out as a warning inside his brain that this girl surely expressed and interest in him like the rest of the girls.

"Will you join the tennis club?" She asked after he had withdrawn contact.

"Yes" She nodded and asked by inertia. "And you?"

"Of course, to get to know each other better" She said clearly. "I've always been interested in you, Irie-kun"

_I see_, he thought. _Why do crazy people fall for me?_ He cursed.

He tilted his head, ignoring her, implying that it was one of the women who would not give up on the first rejection of the second, but she would stay at bay in order to get his affection.

He would clearly not give her wings, rather than talk to her by obligation and education, not just for romantic pleasure. It was already clear that with Kotoko things were different although he did not understand his feelings of tastes for the opposite sex, but she was an important and good person with him.

Not for nothing he had labeled her as his special person.

While in class, he perceived therefore that the black-haired girl who called herself Matsumoto, proved to be quite capable with engineering. She presumed having obtained the third place in the national exam. Simply put, she is not a dumb girl. But a capable suitor.

Leaving the white building, he ran into a disoriented Kotoko walking towards his building with her eyes lost and scratching her head, map in hand.

Matsumoto joined him while he walked in the direction of his friend.

"Kotoko" He called her coldly.

She was surprised to hear his sudden call.

"Naoki-kun!" She said excitedly.

"What are you doing here?" He questioned with his hand on the back of his neck.

"I think I read the map upside down"

"Silly" He curved the corner of his lips with the grace of seeing her disoriented. "What were you looking for?"

"The cafeteria" She muttered between giggles of mischief. "I'm starving!"

"I accompany you" He gave up seeing her so lost, he wanted to help her.

"Is she your girlfriend?" Matsumoto asked, for a moment he had forgotten her presence.

"No, we are friends" She replied nonchalantly. "Aihara Kotoko" She introduced herself, bowing her head with animosity.

"Matsumoto Yuuko" She said with presence and authority. She leaned over his arm with a sign of possession. "I'm going with you, Irie-kun"

"Well, more company" She said, smiling.

Arriving at the cafeteria, she was fascinated by the smell of food coming from the stoves, the sounds of people talking the queue to order.

"How interesting it is to be a university student" She commented in amazement.

"Are you a girl or what?" Matsumoto inquired wryly, taking the girl unexpectedly, because she looked at her questionably.

"How?" She raised her eyebrows in doubt."If what you mean if that if I'm a girl, it's true"

"Are you really a university student?" She asked in a more persistent tone. "You look too childish to be in a place like this"

"Don't you see me here?" She said wryly with a mischievous smile.

Naoki smiled sideways, feeling better about approaching her and accompanied her on the first day.

When it was her turn to order, she ordered the combo A just like Naoki, because the food content caught her attention.

"There's no lunch F here" He scoffed at her, smiling sideways.

"Hey!" She shoved his left arm, offended. He liked to see her reactions. "I can ask for whatever I want" She made an indignant grimace.

When giving them the order at the same time, they noticed a large difference in portions being the same dish. The two frowned telepathically.

"Why are the portions uneven?" He snapped angrily, crossing his arms.

"Are you coming to complain about how I run the business?" An unmistakable voice whipped his ears, that shameless face was prostrated with superiority in front of him.

"Kin-chan!" Kotoko exclaimed with surprise, opening her eyes widely. "What are you doing here?"

"Working beautiful, to maintain you" He crossed his arms with possession and superiority.

"Well, thanks for giving me extra food" She took the batch of food and went to take a place inside the cafeteria tables, seeing the food as a triumph.

"You should treat me with respect" He inquired, raising an eyebrow. "Little portions are for cowards"

"You say I change my way of being because of your silly accusations" He laughed mockingly, which irritated him more. "If you hate my food so much, why don't you bring your own lunch?" He looked at him with disgust.

"Don't talk so familiar with me" He obscured his gaze.

"Who said I want to be familiar with you?" He looked back the same way. "Stupid genius! You don't know how I hate people like you" He pointed at him with contempt.

"The hate is mutual" He replied, grimacing in disgust. "Now serve me the portion that corresponds me" He demanded, crossing his arms.

"Be satisfied with what I served you" He tilted his head selflessly, clenching his lips in a pout form. "Coward genius"

"What do you say about Irie-kun?" Matsumoto intervened, to finish grinding him. "He's more man than you, idiot!" She took him from the arm, imprisoning him in her grip on possession instinct. "Let's go" She ordered safely, tightening the contact as he carried the disproportionate batch of food in his hands. He wanted to go in the direction where Kotoko was sitting alone, devouring the good like a deranged boy, but if he did that the black-haired girl would meddle in his conversation, so it would be better to talk with Kotoko while he was at home.

_This will be a long way to my future as a doctor_, he told himself proudly.

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**P.S. **What do you think? This is the first introduction of Matsumoto into Naoki's life, and also the start of the new chapter in his life.


	3. Accompanied

_"__And I cannot operate on this failure, when all I want to be is completely in command"_

He decided to go the tenis practice where he planned to join the club as a time to clear his mind. The trainer named Sudou, a mustached individual who looked like a care salesman, was famous for being very friendly to people but when you give him a tennis racket he became an unstoppable monster.

With the sportswear on, he went to the tryouts with the rest of the new students who would present to the tryout tests of the club.

Crouched with his inconstant mind, his physical health was in perfect condition so he could win a game of tennis effortlessly.

"Good day to all of you new members of the tennis club," Sudou said with a good-natured air, wearing likewise the tennis clothes with strong colors and bristly hair. "I will call you by name and you will come to the front to assess your skills and abilities in tennis, if you are new to this, please do not fear because I will try to go as slowly as you can, okay?" Everyone nodded. "Well, we'll start with the best, Irie Naoki"

He called him with a challenging air, to which he corresponded by frowning and sighing with disinterest. The flattery of the girls hindered him for being so embarrassing.

He planted his feet firmly on the green tennis court, watching Sudou changed color with an animal instinct while holding the racket. With a hard and consistent blow, the game of tennis began between those two titans of the sport, running all over the court, sweating thoroughly and with the accompanying breathing. Naoki could see beyond only the tennis green ball was hit by himself and by Sudou. Seeing that his blow did indeed take effect and Sudou screamed desperately into the air.

They returned to play another mini game of tennis with more intensity and closure, covering the whole field in its maximum capacity of expansion.

Naoki just won again.

Satisfied with his typical tennis performance, he retired triumphantly to take a quick shower and go to study in the library.

"Irie! Come back here!" The coach exclaimed furiously, who he flatly ignored. W_hat a nasty and strange guy_, he told himself, _he is a lousy loser. _

Matsumoto winked at him with interest, causing him a strange sensation. In a way, he wanted Kotoko to give him support in everything he did.

* * *

The inconsistencies of his stunned mind did not stop torturing him, and as for the level of torture, that would be a very high one, because he was pursued by obsessive thoughts with that girl. As much as he refused to be next to her, the more he wanted to be with her.

It was as if his will was not worth enough to trigger what his rational side ordered.

If love was that way, then it would be the first time something happened to such a degree that dread was given of himself. The food tasted different, sleeping felt different, looking in the mirror every morning was different, walking the streets was different, even drinking water was different. His small and reduced world opened slowly and at the same time in a blink. Because now everything began to seem different.

As the days went by the sunsets grew in him like small details that he had not noticed before; the beautiful nuanced of the reddish sky darkened on the horizon giving way to the quiet night.

If silence used to him him certainty, he now appreciated noise as a new chapter of his life. The textures of his day to day changed, every time he saw Kotoko and heard her laugh, talk, even her silence filled his void.

To deny it to those extremes in which his dearest feelings couldn't be more clear, was laughable. Denying that he felt something strong for her was to go crazy.

Without specifying better, he would say that he was bewitched by her magic indiscreetly. The undeniable attraction for her was leading him to access many of her suggestions, which in his life he believed impossible.

* * *

One day of spring, the sun strokes the path to the university with its rays. Hesitating with its warmth, the leaps and bounds of genius, who advanced in stupor hating the change of weather to one of summer.

His navy blazer combined with the short-sleeved plaid shirt of different blue tones, khaki pants and light brown shoes with brown shoelaces. He was using his headphones listening to an album he bought at the music store, when he thought that maybe he should quietly stay away from Kotoko to clear up his feelings promptly.

The beautiful cherry blossomed trees gave a new artistic color to the road, with the pink petals falling with gravity in a curious zigzags until they crowded on the sidewalk.

Naoki watched them fall around, making a suspicious face, reaching into his hand towards his pants pocket, completely bored. Yes, that was the word: bored.

The genius was bored to walk so early just on the way to school, adding that there was a possibility of being accompanied by that girl; he loathed greatly not being able to come accompanied to school and enter though the doors alone.

Always alone! It was the last straw for him.

A clapping made him turn in the direction of the blow.

"Kotoko?" He said when he realized who the clapping came from. He saw her nod and removed his headphones immediately. "What are you doing here? Don't you have classes until ten?" He asked failing to hide his astonishment.

"I have classes right now" She replied, carrying the bike with both hands, walking at his pace. "I was notified last night that they were advanced" She added.

"It wasn't for you to be so loud" He pretended to complain, even if inside he jumped in joy knowing he wouldn't to go to school alone.

"What are you listening?" She interrogated him, eyeing him.

"Black Celebration, by Depeche Mode" He let her know, showing him the walkman she had lent him.

"I know that one!" She exclaimed in admiration. "I love it!" She expressed in love.

They kept walking until they reached the school, he saw her sideways when he noticed that she turned around to admire the landscape, where there was nature. She took out the phone and she began to take pictured of the cherry blossoms that flew in different directions.

Naoki, decided to be next to speak.

"Your classes are going well?"

"Oh sure," she replied casually, shaking her hand in the air like a carefree person would say. "I don't ask anything about you, because I know you're doing great," she made a sign of excellence.

"Because I have a brain." He boasted despite his feelings.

"Oh rest assure" She laughed sideways. "I have no doubt about that" She said as if he were an accomplice. Suddenly, she laughed in her own world.

"Did the madness come to you? Or is maturity affecting you?"

"Shut up" She tilted her hand, rocking with her same laugh; she wore a short-sleeved red polo shirt, navy blue knee-length shorts, white Adidas sneakers with black shoelaces, her hair in a mini ponytail, as her hair had grown a little.

"Shut me up?" He replied, becoming offended. "At least I have brains to brag about" He raised his chin, giving him the appearance of a whole king.

"Aihara" Sudou's voice called her from the entrance of the University. "Aihara, come here" Naoki frowned at the sight of the lousy loser who was precisely the president of the tennis club. What annoyance… but, worse the annoyance he felt when he saw that he was not speaking to him, but with Kotoko. And for what? What did he want with her? A disastrous irritation invaded his chest mixed with burning rage. "I was looking for you, why do you make me wait?" He raised his voice scolding her for her apparent delay.

Kotoko made a carefree, typical gesture, dodging the scolding Sudou told her furiously, holding her hand abruptly and taking her without her bicycle.

"But my bike" She replied worried. "I have to park it" She struggled with sweat, and Sudou who apparently didn't want to let her go.

Naoki clenched his fists, casting an angry breath; he swallowed before making sure Kotoko would take care of his precious bicycle.

"I'll take care of it" He said with a mock disdain.

"Thank you, Naoki-kun" She smiled at him before being pulled away by the hand of his trainer.

He supposed that perhaps the reason was urgent, but what didn't fit in his mind was how they became so close if he had not even presented them himself. Where did they know each other? If they knew each other before attending college. Or was there another reason behind their relationship? Whatever it was, he did not like to see Sudou hurrying her while she was struggling, and then away from his sight.

Later he would be responsible for establishing accounts with that guy.

* * *

Finishing the classes he went to the library, looking for a book he was waiting for, it would make his homework easier. As soon as a voice that had him very persecuted, spoke to him:

"Irie-kun." Matsumoto had caught him looking for a certain book in the library. "What are you looking for?"

"An engineering book," he replied seriously, as he searched through the return books.

"I have what you are looking for," she said, making a flirtatious gesture. Her eyes said "I want to be with you," as did her body. "I'll give you the book, in exchange for doing me a favor," she released it as if she had planned it long ago.

"What favor?" He interrogated immediately.

"I'll tell you later." She hesitated with a lock of her long curly hair between two of her thin fingers, running them as if she wanted to comb a braid. "First I give you the book, the work you must do with it is more important," she said, blinking sparingly.

"Well, thanks." He forced a small kind smile.

"I'll see you later." She retired triumphantly.

The intentions that Matsumoto had for him did not please him, moreover, they gave him a bad feeling.

* * *

While in his room, he let his abdomen stretch into the bed, expanding his long legs as he read with impassive seriousness, meditating on the favor Matsumoto mentioned that she wanted to ask, something in that did not sound good.

His brother colored a drawing he made of Kotoko for his "Kotoko Observation Diary" that he decided to follow up even though the summer vacations had long since ended.

He supposed maybe he did it because he never got bored with that girl and who didn't? Even he wasn't bored with her.

His cell phone vibrated in the tone of a song by Pet Shop Boys ("West End Girls") took him out of his reading. He checked the contact. Matsumoto Yuuko. _That crazy girl_, he thought, s_he will surely want something from me or something in return for borrowing that physics book that is in the bookcase and I already read, that's it._

"Moshi Moshi" He replied sadly.

"Irie-kun, did I bother you?" She asked with interest.

"No" He snorted quietly. "What do you want?"

"Did you read the book I lent you?"

"Yes, thanks for lending it to me" He nodded.

"I want something in return" She demanded naturally, sounding elegant in her voice with a hint of manipulation towards him.

"I already told you thank you" He grumbled without remembering the favor they accord last time.

"Have a date with me in exchange for the book" A stab of stress hit his head, rolling his eyes. _That girl is voracious at me_, he told himself.

"Where?" He wanted to know.

"Let's watch a romance movie" she said. "I was going to give my tickets to my sister, but I preferred to spend them with you"

"Okay" He agreed with disinterest. "Where?"

"I'll send you the details by text" She hung up the phone with emotional goodbyes. He just threw the cell phone to the carpet floor angrily. How did he let himself be manipulated so easily? Why was he so careless?

"Onii-chan?" His brother was baffled to see him throw the cell phone on the floor.

"It's nothing" He denied.

There he went to waste his long-awaited peace again, when he really wanted to be in charge of his own life, and having it all he could not achieve it. He was losing his way on the road by always thinking of himself.

**P.S.** (Mention of the song "Pale Shelter" From Tears for Fears)

**NOTE:** Hope this chapter is according to the story, and thanks for your comments and I gladly read your reviews.


	4. Unexpected love date

_"__I've been waiting for a girl like you"_

He meditated on his studies in the library, writing down the topics of great interest for his future as a doctor; he red a book of medical terms that he had taken from one of the bookshelves in the library.

As he studied the medical terms he had a book hidden under a aeronautical engineering book; he noted with his right hand the subjects that interested him and would take into account throughout his medical studies of the future.

He imagined the powerful emotion that would invade him when he wore the doctor's coat, analyzing the patient's vital signs and investigating the cause of the disease to cure him.

He has concentrated in the book of medical terminology fascinated with all the terms that could be used throughout illnesses.

He left the book after reading it, to take one of human physiology and also he took notes of the topics of interest and his future research in depth.

A vibration took him out of his students thoughts, he checked his cell phone seeing that it was a text message from Matsumoto. It said:

_Place of the appointment, the cinema near the Aoyama station. _

_We will see the movie of a romance between a sexy cyborg and a college girl. _

_Kisses. _

He put a hand on his forehead, rubbing his temple with uncertainty reaching his throat in a foul knot. Romantic movies him? Not even in his dreams did he see them.

Apparently not. She didn't enter the list of girls of his rank.

What's more, did he had a list of girls of his rank? Neither of them.

When he thought of girls, they caused him discomfort. When he thought of Kotoko, it gave him a sense of refuge. But Kotoko was a girl, one too unique and different from the rest of the other crazy people who were chasing him, which was the safe hitch and the intrigue of wanting to know her more. The thing that always happened to him, awakening in him desires to want to be the man who knew everything about her. Every minimal detail that made her up.

Without knowing how or why, he could assure that that was already a fact.

He retired disturbed of mind from the library, preferring to take refuge in tennis for a while there was daylight to illuminate the sky.

* * *

Finishing the tennis training in the company of Matsumoto, his body was refreshed with a good shower in the men's dressing room, he closed his eyelids when the water fell on it, cleaning the impurities and the sweat of the practice as it passed around his body.

He was exhausted to think so much, to confuse himself with the simple and to emphasize the complicated. He needed to clear his mind in his room, covered between the blankets with his eyelids resting. He was content to know that this is what he would do after washing thoroughly and dressing in comfortable clothes.

Staggering with the wet water spilled on the floor, he was agile as he emerged unscathed from the bathtub. He dried himself up and dressed in less than five minutes, using his hands to accommodate his wet hair from the side where the right was dominant in his hair. He looked very attractive and flawless as a magazine model.

Satisfied with his appearance, he went in a short step towards his house.

* * *

The day of his appointment had arrived and he was waiting with stabbing in his head in stress. He had never been on a date with a woman, he went out with Kotoko, but not with a girl from Matsumoto's level of elegance and maturity. His replica of the opposite sex.

He dressed in a basic black T-shirt and a blue hooded jacket, comfortable jeans and casual white sneakers.

He was waiting for her at Aoyama station with his hands in his pockets, his wallet in his pants, the sorry feeling in his mind for not being with someone who made him vibrate. Matsumoto was a good girl, very intelligent, talented, but he was not attracted to her.

A hand slapped him on the shoulder, soft and delicate: Matsumoto.

"Did I make you wait long?" She asked casually.

"No, I just arrived" He said.

They walked down the street until they reached the cinema. They talked about trivial things.

"You did the homework? The one in the environmental engineering test" She took him by the right arm as a sign of possession.

"I finished it" He replied greening what could happen to his head. "And you?"

"Of course, aren't we intellectually capable of not asking for help" She said superiorly.

"I suppose so" He said seriously. "Why do you want to see this movie?" He asked to know.

"I wanted to see something romantic with you" She flirted. "So you know what I feel for you" She hinted, he felt his skin bristle with panic.

Going through the cinema, they were quickly taken care of by the receptionist handing him the two tickets she had in hand. He followed her into the movie theater, when an unmistakable voice seemed to hear from inside the room, a voice capable of making his heart pound.

Unable to have the time to look for the origin of the voice, he fell lightly into the cinema seat in one of the rows of the center, where the screen can be clearly seen. The girl sat beside him, eager to take his hand.

Wanting to turn around, he cursed himself inside for trying to move in all directions to find the origin of the voice.

Starting the movie, a murmur of someone from the back seat made him tense, a movie pamphlet was thrown between the two seats.

"Sorry" The bargain voice came from behind, he bothered to hear it. He tilted his eyes back, running into the surprise of seeing Kotoko in the final seats of the theater. Alone. _Why is she alone? She came with someone?_

Looking down, he saw another familiar form, an unmistakable and gross identity: Sudou. That guy was the one who threw the pamphlet at him and was right behind him, sitting on the floor of the row leaning over the armchair of Matsumoto.

Naoki thought that had gone too far, even for someone of his type.

Surely he manipulated Kotoko to accompany him and left her alone.

He twitched his body frustrated, watching the film that the screen reflected, he was anxious to hear Kotoko's voice complaining about the scenes of romance between the cyborg and the University student; when the movie was over he felt a part of his body waking up after sitting in a sea of boredom, he preferred to be at home.

* * *

Leaving the cinema, he turned to see if Kotoko was in sight somewhere, but she was nowhere.

Disappointed, he accompanied the girl to some shopping for clothes in clothing stores, where she bought a red V-neck dress at the knees, a tennis racket in the sports store, until she went to have tea in any coffee shop in the Aoyama area.

"What kind of woman do you like, Irie-kun?" She took him unexpectedly while drinking tea.

"Smart, pretty, who know how to cook, mature and sporty" He indirectly described Kotoko, knowing those characteristics by heart. "And you? What kind of men do you like?"

"The intelligent, attractive, athletic, and who knows how to treat a woman" She said, resting his chin on both hands. "Don't you think we are the ideal couple? We would look very well"

"I wouldn't know how to tell you" He snorted selflessly. "I'm not interested in dating someone" He wanted to take a breath of greatness, to hide his feelings. But, he felt than in a way he lied about that gross and mischievous argument.

"Come on, Irie, you know I like you" She looked at him abstractly, her mouth half-open. "Won't you give me a chance?" She sounded hopeful.

"No" He denied without hesitation. She ducked her head thoughtfully.

"Then, I will do my best for you to see me" She placed her hand on his that was resting on the table. "But if you tell me that you prefer Aihara, then I won't stop until you're mine. From the first moment I saw you, I knew you had to be mine"

Why did they talk about him as an object of a property?

Why did they want to bought him as a merchandise?

Wasn't his opinion worth it?

"Why are you talking about Kotoko like that?" He took off her hand from her contact, frowning.

She looked surprised for a moment, but immediately recovered.

"She's a silly girl, she's persistent" She huffed. "But she doesn't look like she's in love with you" She affirmed as if it were a safe fact, even if it was, he didn't know Kotoko's feelings for him, moreover, he only knew that she saw him as a friend and that's it, there was no more clarity.

"How can you know?" He stood up. "Have you asked her? I don't think so" He made a gesture of disagreeing.

"Irie-kun, wait" She held his wrist just as he was leaving. "I didn't mean to speak badly about Aihara, it wasn't my intention, it's just that I feel like she has the lead and I don't want that"

_It's true, she has the lead._

"So instead of being insecure, why don't you come and tell me straight ahead?" He let go of the contact again, and just retuned to the seat to finish his food with a dry taste on the palate.

"Do you like Aihara?" She asked, thirsty for information.

"That is none of your business" He snapped haughtily.

"Of course it is, if it's you" She argued jealously. "I want to be with you; when has she invited you to a date?"

"Several times" He snorted. She opened her eyes like alarmed light bulbs. "And I have accepted them all"

"Then it's a 'yes'" she supposed.

_Kotoko has always had the lead since the beginning._

"I didn't say that, don't make assumptions of my life" He ordered coldly. "What happens in my life is not your business, it's mine and nobody else's"

_No one can come to take away the position I already designated her._

"Let me be part of that too" She asked hopefully to be accepted.

_Kotoko is my special person._ He reaffirmed.

He didn't respond to that, he just let the silence invade them, yet he looked at her cold and calculating, a form of his terrifying being that expressed his internal frustration. Towards anyone's business when he looked with those chilling eyes.

The topic of conversation ended at that point.

* * *

Leaving the cafeteria with an awkward silence, jerks among a small group of people caught his attention who was attentive to the exchange that was seen in the distance.

"What's going on over there?" The black-haired girl pointed with astonished eyes at the exchange.

"I don't know"

They approached to see better what was happening at a distance, three men jerk what appeared to be Kotoko? He was alarmed to see the men shaking her hard and she tried to resist but the clan leader's force far exceeded her strength. A fearful Sudou tried to stop the exchange by failing uselessly.

Impotence was his partner at that time, he ran with strength wanting to stop the situation.

"What is going on here?" He stopped the fierce aggressor's hand, who gave him a resounding blow to the face. "Do you know that violence against woman is a crime? Or your brains are not developed to distinguish a woman" He looked menacingly at the three, who looked at him uncertainly.

"What do you say insect?" The leader snapped with his hands on his beaten face.

Kotoko was lying on the floor, conscious, and with her mouth open when she saw Naoki.

"Naoki-kun, what are you doing here?"

"If you touch her again" He said menacingly. "You will be seen with me"

He went with Matsumoto and took the tennis racket, handing it to Sudou, whispering in his ear "It's your turn to impress her, don't disappoint me"

He took Kotoko by the hand and they ran away.

* * *

Exhausted from running through the city, he stopped at the Aoyama park, where a large, fresh lake was the park's main attraction. Taking huge breaths of air, with his hands on his knees resting, Kotoko breathed normally as if the distance had not affected her a tenth.

"What were you doing there?" She asked, stretching her shoulder.

"I was on a date" he notified between breaths and the feeling of regaining his leisurely breathing.

"With Mariana, Martha, Mariela…" She said confused.

"Matsumoto" He replied with slow breaths. "Matsumoto Yuuko"

"That one!" She pointed reluctantly. "Thank you"

"What were you doing with those bullies?" He inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Sudou-senpai said he would take me to see John Wick, but it was a lie" She expressed disappointed. "When I least expected it, I was watching a romantic movie and then we were walking through clothing stores, a sports shop and when I was leaving I threw my ice cream at a person, he got very upset and threatened to report me to the police for aggravating his security, but his excuse was very lame so I hit him"

"You shouldn't hit strangers" He warned. "Be thankful that I appeared to help you"

"Don't flatter yourself enough" She pushed him amicably.

"If it's me who saves you from the problem" He presumed ironic.

"If you want me to say thanks to you for you to stop being the importante, well, thank you" She agreed complainingly.

They walked a few steps, admiring the beauty of the lake where families strolled in the boat, the intertwined hands of the couples caused a blushed in him, the sounds of the wind running through the treetops turned out to be reassuring.

"Do you want to get on the boat?" He suggested suspiciously.

"Really?" She looked incredulous. He nodded. "Sure"

She ran to line up to ask for the boat, so he followed her along the way. His grumpiness of the morning slowly dissipated.

They boarded the red boat, and he began rowing cautiously since there were several boats occupying the space of the lake, so the freedom of movement of the boat was scarce.

Sighing in the fresh air, he looked at his infant companion, making various funny expressions of happiness for sitting in a simple boat; she touched the water with her fingers, wetting them and running the water over her hair at shoulder height.

He consoled himself with paddling the boat, watching her delight with the reflection of her face in the lake's water, smiling sideways being calm, content to have a nice figure in front of him.

"Why isn't it common for couples to come to this place?" She questioned, while recharging at the other end of the boat. "I'm curious, because were are two couples here"

He remembered the superstition of the couples passing through that lake were destined to separate.

"It's because of the superstition" Her eyes widened. He took that as an indication to continue. "They say that couples passing through this lake are destined to separate"

"Wow" She exclaimed in amazement.

"Do you believe in superstitions?" He asked sultrily.

"Not at all" She laughed mockingly. "And you?"

"Neither do I"

"They're to keep the people in love away" She pointed out, shaking her hands in the air, her hair moving with the rhythm of her body and her smile brightening his sight. "If they really wanted to, couples can go anywhere and not believe in silly superstitions"

A splash sounded resounding, coming from the raft of the couple next to them. Both turned to see what happened.

"What happened?" Kotoko asked with concern.

"I dropped my bag" A middle-aged woman screamed, bringing her hands to her cheeks with her face flushed with shame, her partner comforted her.

Suddenly, Kotoko stood up, she took off her hat, vest, shirt and tennis shoes.

"What are you doing?" Naoki asked alarmed.

"Take care of this" She was in a white basic tank top, she made a diving position and threw herself into the water like a bullet.

"Kotoko!" He called her scared. The clothes where in his hands, but he preferred to look at the water waiting for her to appear. The Mrs. Exclaimed, scared to see her throw herself into the water.

After a few seconds, her head floated up, swimming in the direction where the Mrs. Boat was where she delivered the wet bag.

"Thank you, thank you so much, I don't know how to make up for this" The Mrs. Screamed, dripping tears of happiness.

"It's not necessary" She excused herself and addressed him swimming in crawl position, her wet hair looked darker and longer, strands of hair blocked her eyebrows and part of her eyelashes. He extended his hand, to which she pulled him straight into the water.

Sparks of cold water plunged into his clothes, leaving him soaked from head to toe. Her laughter made him enter in himself when he pulled his head to the surface.

"Why did you do that?" He said annoyed. She laughed like a naughty girl, making him blush. Her laughter, wet hair, her face lit up twice with the water and the sunset of the sky making her beauty more visible.

"Just laugh, Naoki-kun"

He was going to open his mouth to say something, but he did not resist the laughter of that girl so he stopped restricting himself and began to laugh. They splashed water on their faces, playing without caring that families kept looking at them like they were a couple of crazy people.

Subsequently, they left the lake delivering the boat clean and intact, while she held in her arms the clothes she took off before throwing herself into the water where the basic white shirt of suspenders was slightly transparent, revealing her flat and toned abdomen, the muscular arms and water droplets falling from the strands of hair distilling and attractive and bright effect.

They walked to the shade of a tree to hang their wet clothes and wait for the one they were waiting to dry. They sat on the dry grass with a smell of wet earth, the wind passed through the treetops creating a relaxing effect for Naoki, who hugged his legs sitting and exhaling in the large amounts of pure air.

He looked sideways at his companion, lying on the grass with her eyes closed, her arms serving as a pillow under her head. Her chest was widening and dwarfing as she breathed deeply.

Her legs spread wide, wet pants and white shirt began to dry a little, although he could see the abdomen of the girl and that made him blush.

_What is happening to me is normal? What is it exactly? Could it be that what is happening to me is what they call 'love'?_

Those questions were spinning around him, cramming his mind no matter how quiet she was, he wanted to make sure she felt the same way he did.

She opened her eyelids with a big breath of air.

"What a great weather, don't you think Naoki-kun?"

"I suppose" He replied, returning his gaze to the lake.

"I wish I could stay here" She sighed, sitting up with him.

"Why?"

"It's so peaceful to be in a place without worried and that nature gives it to you, it's wonderful" She curled up, the strands of hair covered her ears and part of her eyebrows.

"I want that too" He said peace coming out of his voice.

"Isn't that true?" She stretched out full body, taking him by surprise. Doesn't this girl run out of energy? She jumped to her feet and stretched her arms with rapid movements, then shook her head like a dog to dry her hair.

"You look like a dog" He joked.

The hair danced, almost gracefully as the raindrops fell on the grass with sudden jerks.

"I like drying my hair like that" She snorted when she stopped. "It's fun"

"You are very strange"

"They often tell me" She laughed nonchalantly.

She grabbed the clothes hanging from the tree brach, putting on the red three-quarter sleeve shirt and the white one in the center, the red vest and the red cap, so he also put on the clothes that were dry.

"Do you want to eat something?" He suggested, wanting to prolong the time together. She nodded.

"Hamburgers" Her face lit up just to mention them.

"Come on" He agreed.

They passed a Burger King in the Aoyama area, ordering the combo that included fries and soda. They sat on the benches outside, watching the passers-by pass, the sounds of the horn of the vehicles, the murmurs of the people sounded in the distance like echoes.

She devoured the hamburger as if it were the last meal of her life: the inflated cheeks and the dirty mouth made her look like the girl she was.

He ate quietly, it could even be said that elegant and graceful, some girls who passed in front of them looked at him with flirtation, a detail that bothered him despite being accustomed to being the center of women's attention without trying.

Kotoko snatched his fries.

"You're going to get fat" He said wryly. "How do you plan to get a boyfriend with that appetite?"

She twitched.

"Leave me alone!" She snapped wrinkling her nose. "I am thin, don't you see well?" She lifted her shirt showing her toned abdomen, causing people's eyes to turn to her with interest.

"Don't show me that," He complained, though his heart jumped nervously when he saw that image again, his belly white, soft and somewhat damp from being wet in the lake.

She laughed and lowered her shirt, hiding her abdomen from the public's eyes.

"I thought you were suffering from myopia with those comments" She said sarcastically, drinking the soda and bitting the hamburger with carelessness. Without noticing the red face of the guy next to her.

"At least I don't have night blindness" He snorted wryly, making a mocking expression. Clearly turning away to hide his red face from her.

"That hurt" She said, pouting and nudged him on the left side.

Returning to the house, they took the subway, sitting next to each other watching people while talking about trivial things, spending the time they had left of the day because the night was in the sky and the last rays of sun looked at the distance. A reddish layer covered the sky, the white dots lit up in the dark sky, twinkling in the distance.

Placing the key to enter his house, he felt like not entering and that his tranquility was over, for some reason he wanted to flee his home with her without looking back. However, unable to achieve such a feat, he clicked on the door handle and entered the house. His day was over with a certain fact:

He was in love with Aihara Kotoko.

**P.S. **(Mention of the song "Waiting for a girl like you" from Foreigner)

**NOTE:** What do you think? This is a rather long chapter and it will be rare to see a long one because there are not so long, but this one is long because I wanted to dedicate one chapter to the date Naoki has with Matsumoto and then things start to get better when he saw Kotoko.

Also, here is when Naoki finally accepts his feelings for Kotoko.


	5. The departure of hurricane Kotoko

_I like Kotoko. _

He rubbed his hair lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling without an exact spot to see, centering his eyes to the surroundings, blinking with the tiredness of his body, giving him an effect of being carried away by his sleepiness.

He had just accepted an unusual fact that he had refused to accept for months. He assimilated the fact that he was in love with someone whom he greatly appreciated and admired with greatness; someone who made him shudder just by hearing her name and she had gotten under his skin as an accessory to cure his permanent discomfort with life.

Irie Naoki was in love with Aihara Kotoko…

He had known her for a long time, but pride and his hostile personality towards life got in the way of his decisions, blinding his heart. In the past he suffered a trauma caused by his fanciful mother, and although it hurt a lot, he resigned himself to sticking to female people. He hated women.

But, since Kotoko appeared in his life, things soon began to change within his small and reduced world of knowledge, to one that slowly expanded; without sorrow or glory, he agreed to be in love for the first time, and reiterated that it would be the only time he would fall in love, since he didn't know any person identical to Kotoko and did not want to meet another woman other than her.

He was already accustomed to her presence, despite her inconstant noises and clumsiness, he was made by the person with whom he longed to be. Sure it was, she was his type.

His special person.

_I like her, I like her, I like her,_ he repeated it countless times, covering his face with his forearms in a crossed way, _I can't believe it, I should be insane and since when am I in my right mind? No, this is not about judgements or anything like that, this is about feelings… _he paused feeling the blush of his cheeks increase, he breathed in and out, _I admit that it feels uncomfortable and at the same time it feels good to have admitted it after so much time that I refused to accept it_. He grabbed a pillow and breathed on it, putting a half face on the pillow. _Ah… I can't wait to see her in the morning, _he told himself before falling asleep.

* * *

Thirsty in the late evening, he sneaked down a glass of water; it struck him to see that the dining room lights were on and voices were heard. Who were they? He approached stealthily, leaning his ear against the wall that connected the living and dining room with the entrance of the house.

"Kotoko-chan, we don't want you to go" His mother screamed with a handkerchief in her eyes, wiping her tears.

"We want you here" Said his father with a sad aura. "But if you want to move, we can't do anything to stop it"

Move? How? When? Were? Why?

His chest began to ache in the same way that his mind was confused.

He moved closer to the edge of the wall, eager to know more.

"I'm sorry, but I want to be independent" Kotoko's voice was blunt. "I want to live alone"

"Daughter, I'm coming with you" Mr. Aihara spoke in a worried voice. "You have never been alone"

"No, if I'm alone, I can't be independent. I want to prove that I can do it" She demanded increasing her tone. "If I see that I cannot do it, I will return"

"Ai-chan, Kotoko-chan is a very capable girl, of course she can live alone without problems" His father argued, causing him a stab in the chest as if they were needles. "How much time do you need, Kotoko-chan?"

"I still don't know, when I know I'll let you know" She said bluntly. "Thank you, Oji-san, for giving me the opportunity to take this important step, and dad" She sighed loudly and calmly. "I won't lose touch with you, you know you can count on me and I'll see you every day, if possible. Oba-sama, I am very grateful for your attention to me, I will visit you too if possible" His mother's shrieks echoed through the place, being sad to know Kotoko's departure. "I'll be back as soon as you expect it"

He climbed up having his thirst and the desire to leave his bedroom. His head was spinning just like the pain in his chest pumping blood to the extremities of his body, leaving him feeling empty. He never wanted to feel empty again like in the past.

He couldn't sleep at all, keeping his head and body in bed with the panic of falling asleep and knowing that he would wake up and he would no longer see her in the dining room having breakfast, saying good morning, accompanying him on the way to the University and have dinner together. Those moments would end with her departure. _I don't want that. _

Is it because of him that she was leaving? But if he hadn't done anything wrong with her.

Then why? What is the reason for her departure?

_I don't want this, I don't want her to leave._

* * *

The day of her farewell had arrived and Naoki saw it coming as a nightmare in flesh and blood. He hated to see the moving boxed in the hall, the psychedelic suitcase being handled by her, Mr. Aihara's truck with Kotoko's belongings in the truck.

The stabs of his chest did not cease with the passing of the days of seeing the horrendous cardboard boxes with signs like 'clothes', 'books', 'music' ,etc. it gave him the urge to take the boxes back to her bedroom sho she wouldn't move, but since she was a stubborn person, he wouldn't convince her so easily.

His mother's shrieks increased that morning of her farewell, she hugged the girl so many times that it seemed she would break her bones; his father wished her the best of luck and they gave each other a friendly hug, Yuuki, on the other hand, looked sad even though he did not admit so easily, he gave the girl some elementary math exercises with the desire that it would make her smarter. As for him, he was dry of words, dry of seeing her with the suitcase in hand, dry of everything.

He was speechless without saying goodbye.

He let her leave with the bitter feeling of the present leaking from his hands as easy as breathing.

She was gone.

* * *

The house was completely silent, the hall looked quiet and suffocating; a silence invaded the empty space.

The shrieks of his mother, the silence of his brother, and his father trying to take things for a better course. However, Mr. Aihara's presence made him remember who that absent person was.

He saw her in the distance at the university, talking to her friends and in the company of one or another friend, he felt so distant despite having met her for a year. One of the best of his life.

He listened to the cassettes that he bought in the music store. He listened Actually from the Pet Shop Boys, or sometimes Dark Side of The moon from Pink Floyd with hopes of feeling better, or raising the mood of the emptiness not satiated and unbearable of his life.

Tennis practices became monotonous, classes too, homework and school work lost their flavor, the food was bad for his liking.

Life was losing its taste, color, smell, sensation and life, everything she had give him she took it away from him.

He wondered if she was okay, if she ate at her hours, if she worked to support herself, if her studies were complicated, if she knew how to do finances. He needed to talk to her, to relive the date they had at the lake. Relive any moment they had together when she lived at home.

It would do no good to be sad and alone without having taking action.

* * *

A month after her departure, he had not talked to her once, apparently she was quite busy because she was not going to look for him, but who was she to look for him? She wasn't even in love with him.

Leaving the tennis club, he left with his handbag while maintaining the haughty pose and the expression of coldness and disinterest. He noticed that two familiar-looking girls approached him doubtful to talk to him—the blond one and the chubby one— so he turned to face them.

"What do you want?" He inquired coldy.

"Irie" They chanted like talkative macaws. "Kotoko" He didn't understand what they were saying because they were intelligible phrases.

"Tell me well, I don't understand"

"Kotoko fainted" He didn't let them finish the sentence because he went straight to the infirmary, his heart beating with severe force and his breathing agitated, he arrived as fast as his legs allowed.

He entered the nursing room in the medical department, he asked about her and fortunately they took all the meddlers out of the place, so she was alone.

"It's just fatigue and stress, in a few days she will be like new" The nurse said kindly.

Fatigue and stress? She was surely not eating at her hours and had neglected her health for wanting to be alone. That girl!

He approached to see her sleeping face, the dark circles under her eyelids reflected the lack of sleep, her complexion pale due to the lack of food, he felt cold at the touch of his hand slightly bruising against hers.

He watched her, eager for her to remain in that peaceful state in his care, when he saw her sleeping he realized how much he missed her every day, like a ship lost in the horizon.

She woke quietly, opening her eyes for looking better.

"Where am I? What happened?" She moved slowly, as he helped her up. Carrying his arm behind her waist where he felt warm, his leg rested on the stretcher lightly brushing her hand. He wanted to stay still.

"You passed out" He wanted to sound selfless. "In the basketball training"

She noted his presence.

"Naoki-kun!" She shrieked in excitement at the sight of him with his face in blank. She pounced at him in a friendly way, hugging him from his free side, gently squeezing his body. His skin bristled, his heart jumped with joy at begin greeted with affection by the girl he liked.

"You're a fool to neglect your health" He scolded her coldly. "How could you train if you felt bad? The nurse said it's fatigue and stress, you looked for it, Kotoko, I won't alway be there for you" She put on a scolded girl's face, shrugging her shoulders, she squeezed him into the hug that made him shiver with joy inside though on the outside he needed to keep the facade of being annoyed.

"Yes, you're right, I neglected my health" She admitted defeat, hiding her face in his side. "I wanted to to everything at once and look what happened to me"

"Don't be stubborn, if my mother would welcome you with open arms" He said, drawing out the accumulated tension of the last days of missing her so much. _You can hug me all you want, Kotoko, I won't put up resistance, since I like you, I don't mind if you do. _

"No" She moved away from his side, with a determined gesture. "I need to learn to live alone"

"What's your eagerness to do so?" He inquired, frowning.

"I want to prove to myself that I can be independent" She admitted, ordering her ideas. "But, now I don't know how to do it, I haven't eaten much and the work I have is tedious"

"Give up, and come to live with us back" He ordered in a scolding way. "If you can't do it now, do it later" He laid his hands on her shoulders so he could stare at her, flushed and nervous inside, he needed to kept calm. "You are part of the family, you cannot disappear like this without more"

She smiled at him sincerely, her eyelids tensed and her front teeth stood out like precious pearls.

"I love you, Naoki-kun" She hugged him again, feeling like he could die right there. He didn't process the words, he just let his arms hold her at the waist, caressing her waist, her black hair, her shoulders, wrapping her gently.

She told him she loved him.

She smelled sweet, the smell that hypnotized him just by inhaling it once, he lost his mind with feeling loved by her. Suddenly, taking him unexpectedly, she took off from him, and rubbed the strands of her hair.

"I'll think about what you told me" She said, winking. "For the moment, I'll take care of myself and prove that I can do it"

"But, Kotoko, don't be foolish, come home!" He raised his voice indignantly, a few moments ago she said she loved him, what did this mean?

"I want to think about it, when you least expect it, I'll be back" She laughed unconcerned, so much he felt left out of her side, he gave her a blow on her head. "Hey!" She made an indignant gesture.

"That happens to you for being so stubborn" He complained, bringing a hand to his forehead. _If you knew how worried I was about you, silly._ He sighed frustrated.

"This stubborn girl will prove to you that she can do what she proposed, you will see what she does" She gave herself courage, holding hands with a determined expression, the one with which she passed the exams of the school, the same with which she ran five kilometers to give him his things for the national exam, that look with which she arrived at the graduation ceremony with Chibi. Of course she could do it alone, she didn't need to prove it to anyone, but apparently she did.

"I better leave you, before you infect me with your foolishness" He said bitterly, hiding his concern.

What could he do to convince her to return? He wanted her to return home and to things to go their normal course.

Maybe she didn't want him that way, if she wanted him as a couple she would have listen to him and kissed him on the face, which he wouldn't refuse, on the contrary he would let himself be kissed as much as she wanted, but the thing didn't go there, she wanted him as a friend. And he would change that.

.

.

.

.

**P.S. **Another chapter sooner than I expected! What do you think? I did another twist in the plot, as you can see I changed the part where Naoki moves out of the house, but instead I change it for Kotoko, because I felt that she needed more time to mature and to understand herself as a person and her own feelings.


	6. The tragedy of the mini Irie

_"__I just died in your arms tonight"_

Dejected for not being taken into account, in a way excluded from the life of Kotoko. He was in no mood to do anything other than seeing the four walls of his room while comforting himself with the music that reminded him of her. He remembered the hug they had in the infirmary: that indelible moment, the sensations of feeling loved invaded his entire body giving him the thorn of wanting to do it again. Of wanting to feel reciprocated.

His parents were going out the day after a wedding, Mr. Aihara would accompany them to the weekend event and he had classes in the afternoon; everyone would leave Yuuki alone, fortunately, Kotoko offered to take care of the boy because he would be left alone and no one could take care of him.

He admitted that he felt pale when he knew that if he arrived early, maybe he would see her a few minutes before he left. He needed to convince her to live in his house again.

He took his walkman and the new cassette he bought at the music store on one of his sad days for the girl: Please from Pet Shop Boys. He listened to them daily on the subway course, also when he was studying in his room sitting at the desk and when he looked out the window wanting to breathe the fresh night air.

The winter airs were seen coming as the temperature dropped and the use of coats and scarves was already a necessity; he only limited himself to wearing the black button coat he wore in that season.

His brown hair had grown because of his carelessness, since he was absent from his personal needs because he was thinking of someone else.

He put gel on his hair that morning and combed with the brush wanting to hide the growth of his brown hair. He hoped he didn't attract girls' attention too much because if he left a different hairstyle or wore a new garment, they drool to see it differently.

Although his feelings were new and strange in his body, he liked to feel that way, as if it were a new challenge specially designed for him.

His feelings he considered as new, which was in a way, true; he had never fallen in love with someone in his life, and he did not expect to do so in the future.

But fate played a heavy burden on him that subdued him and shook him as if a lightning bolt had crashed into his body, piercing him little by little and then, in a blinking.

Despite this and that, from one situation they guided him to another, he decided to set a goal:

His goal was to make the girl fall in love with him, the same one that caused him so many feelings and smiles, he wanted her to feel the same way he did.

* * *

On the subway, he recharged to see better the fast movements with which things went unnoticed by the human eye. Those objects that cannot be seen, but feel: love.

In the afternoon he was sitting on a bench on the campus of the university, reading a police story to quench his boredom before having lunch and go home.

His cell phone vibrated inside his pants pocket, he pulled it out, saying "Aihara". What could it be?

"Naoki-kun!" A scream from Kotoko echoed in his ear. "It's Yuuki-kun, it's very serious."

A stab of concern arose.

"Explain it to me well," he ordered to know.

"When I arrived at the house, I found him lying on the floor of the room, he was vomiting and complaining of a pain in the stomach, I called and ambulance and we are already in the hospital. I need you to sign the family permit so they can operate him" She implored in a desperate voice. "Please hurry up, Yuuki needs you"

"I'm coming"

His moment of tranquility disappeared from the face of the earth, he ran as soon as he could. His brother must be fine, most likely it was a problem in the intestine and things were fixed. He needed to get there fast.

* * *

When he arrived at the hospital, he searched as soon as he had the information, where his younger brother was.

Entering the waiting room, he saw his brother in bed with teary eyes and Kotoko with a disheveled expression, in a state of not knowing what to do and how to behave.

"I signed the papers" He spoke in trouble. She noticed his presence and almost fell off the chair.

"Naoki-kun" She said gratefully. "You come"

"Of course I was coming" He approached to see his bedridden brother, placed his hand on his small head, rubbing his brown hair identical to his own.

"Onii-chan" He murmured in joy.

"Everything will be fine, you will be operated and you will be like new, okay?"

Yuuki nodded at the gesture.

"What is the diagnosis?" She asked, with a grimace of doubt. "They just told me that they to operate him and get a relative to sign the permit"

"Indigestion, his intestines got stuck and need to unlock the passage" He explained with a few details, until the doctor appeared with three nurses, taking the boy to he operating room.

"We'll start with the operations, you can retire" The young doctor warned. "We don't allow visitors at this time of day because it's too late"

"It's eight o'clock" The girl protested. "It's not too late"

"But the operation will take time, he needs to rest and tomorrow you can visit him early, please understand the rules" The doctor looked hurriedly was asked to go to surgery room.

"Kotoko, let's go" Naoki took her by the shoulder indicating that she should obey the doctor's orders.

Standing outside the hospital, he leaned over her head exhausted from his brother's problem.

"Kotoko, thank you." He put a hand on her head, stroking the strands of soft black hair.

She turned around tearing a little, hugged him tightly in her arms, squeezing her hands on his back, he corresponded the gesture, resting his head on his crown, inhaling the sweet scent of the girl who relaxed him to extensions beyond his human abilities; An addictive aroma. It felt like the song she once put at home when she put the stereo on her shoulder and danced without rhythm ("(I just) died in your arms" by Cutting Crew), hugging her now gave the impression of wanting to be always in that comforting position, he would die for being like that.

"I was so scared, I thought it was something serious, I didn't know what to do but call an ambulance and talk to you." She inhaled agitatedly. "I knew I could trust you and you would come to save him."

"You did well" He assured calmly. "It was the best thing you could do, keep clam and act"

She separated from him, wiping away the few tears that came out of her eyes with her forearms and the dorsal side of her hand.

"I'm fine, thanks Naoki-kun." She took deep breaths to calm her agitated breath of the same fright. Until she was stable she broke the silence, as always. "Do you want to sleep in my apartment?" She suggested unconcerned.

Did he heard well?

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**P.S. **(Mention of the song (I just) died in your arms" by Cutting Crew)

**NOTE:** What do you think of the chapter?


	7. Night conversations

_"__She seems to suspect, she seems to discover in me, of that love"_

"Sorry?" He coughed confused. "Sleep in your apartment?"

"Yes, it's a ten-minute walk" She said calmly, hands tucked into her black jacket with a hood. "I mean, the house is far away and this is closer, what do you say?"

"I couldn't tell you"

"Or do you prefer to be alone at home?" She snapped taking the route opposite to his home.

"Okay, I'll go to your apartment" He agreed temped to spend the night by her side.

His heart was pounding in his chest, his hands were sweating and the uncertainty of spending the night with her was unreal. Why did he access so easily? She will think that he is in need of love and she will make fun of him for being so childish.

They walked along a different and peaceful route, where little by little the noise of the city diminished as they approached a small building of about four flours of cream color.

They entered the building, going up to the elevator to the third floor, she took out a set of keys with a guitar key ring that held everything.

Entering the apartment, the sweet smell of packed him into the point of feeling increasingly addicted to the smell.

"Don't look too much" She ordered, taking off her shoes and entering the place.

He obeyed for a while, because he kept observing the surroundings of the place with hopes of finding it dirty, he was surprised to see it moderately clean, some stains here and there, but nothing extraordinary.

"I still don't get used to having it always clean" She laughed distressed, she sat in the four dining room chairs where a rectangular wooden table was in the middle. In the same room, there was the bed of navy blue cover and a medium size, a bookcase where there were topics of cinema and cinema history, on the wall the posters of Soda Stereo were placed, and one of Gustavo Cerati as a soloist. He also saw that there was a navy floor mat with loose pieces, a bedside table with a lamp and a camcorder resting there, some things around were scattered and turned out to be sheets with written content stuck on the wall and others managed in the ground.

"Why are papers thrown out?" He asked trying to get up on the carpet, where the softness and warmth invited him to remain prostrated there.

"They're ideas for projects" She said clearly. "Some things are homework for school and others are personal ideas"

"You've put interest in your studies" He said wryly. "As far as I know you were a lazy girl to do homework"

She laughed nervously and flinched at the comment, she turned to see him better with her knees in her chest and her arms hugging herself.

"I said I could handle myself alone" She presumed, arching her eyebrows in mock pretentiousness. "Well, changing the subject, I'll take a bath, you can use the phone to call Oba-sama and tell her about Yuuki-kun" She pointed to the phone that was at the entrance next to the keystone.

As soon as she retired, he heard the sound of the water in the shower, he felt like a prisoner of his desires and from being the only one who expected something else.

He marked his mother with the certainty of being left at the expense of his loneliness and male thoughts.

"Mother" He exclaimed when he heard her answer.

"Onii-chan? What's going on? Why are you calling from an unknown number?" She sounded shocked. The sounds of people at the party didn't let her speak in a low voice, but almost screaming.

"It's Yuuki, he got sick and we took him to the hospital"

"Is he okay?" She said with wide concern and bewilderment. "My little boy, tell me he's okay, we'll be right there in Tokyo"

"It's not necessary, it's not serious" He assured calmly and clearly. "I'm with Kotoko in her apartment"

"We'll be there first thing morning" She said quickly. "As for you, don't do improper things with Kotoko-chan, she's so innocent and fragile" She hung up the phone with that stingy voice the took him out of his boxes. That woman surely thinks that he will do 'that', he didn't even wanted to speak

Why did he say he was with her?

He was losing his mind, but what else could he do? He needed to abstain for his irrevocable desires and stand firm in his friend posture.

He knelt on the dark blue carpet, inhaling wide puffs trying to calm his nerves, focusing his attention on the papers lying on the floor to distract his mind. Some works were from "Analysis of modern cinema", "History of modern cinema", "Review of my favorite films". He could not help but sketch a small smile of pride to see that she was struggling to complete her work accordingly and that the tasks looked more detailed than in high school. _You did Kotoko well, you proved that you could be a better student, I hope you stay that way in the future and I be part of it._

The door opened and the tranquility he had managed to completely vanished.

"You can take a bath, if you want" Kotoko suggested. She was in pants and a button-down shirt with blue squares of different shades of green. "Oba-sama put one of your clothes in one of the moving boxes, maybe she supposed that one day you would come" She took out of the closet where his clothes were, a change of clothes for him that he strangely hadn't realized that his mother stole from his bedroom. "Sometimes I think Oba-sama is a witch, because she predicted that one day you would come to my apartment" She laughed embarrassed, giving her an imprisoned and somewhat angelic atmosphere from his point of view.

She dried her hair with a towel that laid on her shoulders, her wet strands of hair slipped through her clean face. It was a pleasurable image, so much that his legs faltered as she approached his direction with the best disposition, holding his clothes naturally and extending them to him.

"There's a towel over there in the bathroom, you can use that one" She said.

"Thank you" He said stiffly.

He moved with mechanical movements towards the bathroom that was located in the second door of the entrance, passing through the other transparent door, he looked at the drops of water marked on the glass indicating that this was the shower where she bathed.

He swallowed, _you're just going to take a shower, don't think anything wrong._

He analyzed the surroundings where the bathroom utensils rested on the inside of the shower, a strawberry shampoo, a white cream-smelling soap, the handle of temperature changes and the bathtub.

He sighed deeply before taking the bath and relaxing with the hot water that passed through his tense body, the days of missing her disappeared because they were in the same place and when he came out of bathing they could have the time to talk. That was enough to be happy with himself.

Leaving the bathroom after drying with the green towel, forgetting that he was in a hanging rail, he found that she was preparing dinner for both of them. His heart jumped with joy, _we look like a newlywed couple_. He smiled mischievously, he was quite happy.

"Thank you for lending me the bathroom," He thanked, entering the dining room, where a miso soup and rice rested. "I imagine Watanabe has been here, right?"

"Not at all." She replied while cooking fried chicken in the pan. "Things have not been all right with him." She made an awkward gesture, to which he assumed he had confessed again and that was the reason why which she mentioned that.

"Why?" He asked, nodding selflessly.

"He confessed to me!" She exclaimed in surprise, tapping her palm on the cutting board. "Can you believe it?" She looked at him with bulging eyes. "But I rejected him, I mean, I don't hate him or anything like that, it's just ..." She moved the gesture to one thoughtfully, as if searching for words to describe the situation.

"It's just what?" He pressed the tone.

"I look at him as a friend!" She raised her voice incredulously. "There is nothing more than that! I mean, I don't love him and that's it, although I like him and it hurts to have rejected him, but it's the best thing," She said sincerely. "I hope he doesn't hate me for rejecting him."

"I don't think he does that," He said with an affirmative look. "Watanabe is not spiteful"

"He's that kind of person, isn't it?"

He nodded.

"I feel better," She sighed in relief.

"Oji-san has come here?" He interrupted the atmosphere.

"No, you're the first one to come here." She admitted, as she laid the pieces of chicken on a single plate to remove the leftover fat. He was flattered to be the first boy to enter her apartment and have the luxury of seeing how she had it fixed. "What are these questions coming to? Don't tell me you're jealous."

As always, she hit the mark, only he didn't know that important detail, nor was he aware of his emotions.

"Don't be vain," He snapped.

"But you're the one who started it." She laughed ironically.

He was speechless without knowing how to respond to the comment.

"Did you talk to Oba-sama?" She changed the subject, perhaps realizing that he wouldn't say anything about it. He nodded. "I'm glad, because I don't want Yuuki-kun to be alone, that I most wanted to be keeping him company," She said with his head bowed.

She brought the plate of fried chicken to the table, assuming it was time for dinner before going to sleep. For some reason, the food tasted good, maybe for the hours he lasted without eating food.

"At least I won't die from indigestion" He said mockingly.

"What are you implying?"

"You shouldn't send me to the hospital" He continued mockingly with his mischievous grin. "If not, who would have taken you out that mess? Be more grateful to me"

"Look who's talking" She replied, wrinkling her nose, indignant. "If you are the dream of all the girls"

"And I'm not yours?" He wanted to hide his fear through his mask of mockery and irony.

"No" She said bluntly. "Why should you be my ideal man?"

"I don't know, you just said that I am the dream man of all the girls, and you are also a girl" He lowered the plate of food, bringing his face close to hers, feeling the danger that his heart would burst from the nerves in his chest. He was making a very dangerous play with her, regardless of what his emotions asked him to move further to her mouth, but he had to stop. He wouldn't achieve anything playing that way. "Aren't you attracted when we're like this? Isn't there something inside you that moves you and encourages you to want to be this way with me?"

"Nonsense, Naoki-kun" She moved away from him without changing her serious expression. "If I liked you, I would have told you a ling time" She frowned. "Besides, I have my own type"

"Oh yeah? And there is that kind of crazy people like you?" He inquired in a pretentious tone, frustrated from her rejection, the pain in his chest penetrated him to the bones. She raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Crazy like me?" She said as if she wanted to laugh at him "And surely there are antisocial geniuses like you, right?"

"Hey!" He snapped offended by the comment. If she only knew he liked her…

"I only paid you with the same coin as you" She explained, making mocking gestures combined with a grin of disdain.

"You always with your phrases" He grumbled, rolling his eyes, arms crossed. "Silly girl" He twisted his lower lip in a grimace of disgust.

"Hm" She looked incredulous, raising her eyebrows in a challenging air. "At least I have to say"

"Baka" He muttered, nodding sideways, disinterested.

* * *

After eleven, she closed one of the notebooks where she reviewed past notes and with his guidance he could help her order some notes that were messy. At her yawn, it was the indication that it was time to go to sleep.

"Well, it's time to sleep." She rose from her chair, stretching her arms in the air.

"I'll sleep on the floor," He warned with weakness in his voice. The recent nerves were taking the best of him.

"What are you saying?" She bragged with her hands on her waist. "Do you plan to sleep in the cold? You will sleep with me" She said.

"I'm a man, you know" He protested helplessly.

"What's the matter with that?" She looked at him reluctantly. "You know that if you do something wrong, I'll break your arm" She warned aggressively.

"Don't be stubborn"

"No, don't be scared" She pointed her finger firmly, her eyebrow furrowed. "You behave as if you don't know me" She sighed with her mouth open, saying. "Whatever, do what you want, and don't complain tomorrow if you couldn't sleep because of the cold"

She went to the bed, detached it by pulling out the navy blue cover aggressively and extended it to her to take it and a sky-blue circular cushion. She put her body between the blankets and turned around. Ignoring him.

"Goodnight"

Confused between his own dilemma, he wanted to go to bed with her, but at the same time he wanted to lie on the floor and erase the crazy thoughts from his youthful mind.

_The hell my thoughts._

He slipped into the blankets where she was turning her back, put the circular cushion as a pillow and turned off the light of the night lamp.

"Good night," He whispered softly.

What he had done was very impulsive to his personality, even contradictory in not being someone desperate to be noticed by the only person who moved his heart.

The warmth of the blankets gave him the certainty that the cold was far from his reach, he was breathing deeply feeling the softness of the blankets hugging his newly bathed and dined body.

She cocked to see him absorbed.

"You didn't think I would come, right?" He said flirtatiously, hiding the nervousness of his voice.

"Why did you turn off the light?"

"To sleep"

"I have night blindness, I can't see anything" She complained. For a moment he had forgotten about the girl's disease, thanks to his nervousness that important detail escaped him.

"Are you afraid of the dark, Kotoko?"

"It's not that, I'm afraid that I can't see" Her soft voice sounded like echoes in his ears. "You can turn on the night light, the lamp had a night mode so the lighting is low" She specified, to which he obeyed, he searched for the device switch and found the night mode. The night light mode was left, almost translucently like a chrysalis of a butterfly. It could even be said that it was the moonlight that was reflected from the window, illuminating the room where the two were lying with their splendor. "Thank you"

"Can you see?" He snapped stubbornly. "I don't want you to fall anywhere and not let me sleep."

"Sorry if my presence is a nuisance to you," She said wryly.

_You are not a nuisance to me and you will not be in the future._

"Aren't you disappointed?" He asked seriously, having let a few seconds pass.

"Of what?" She made a doubtful expression.

"If I haven't done anything with you"

"No, I didn't want to have that kind of thing with you," She said seriously, somewhat awkwardly. "What about you, Naoki-kun?" You have your future waiting"

He locked into thought, clenched his knuckles under the blanket watching the leisurely breathing of his female companion, waiting for his response.

"I'm worried if you leave everything for later and one day you'll wake up being an old man who will feel he didn't do anything to be happy." She added with a bafflement.

"I won't leave him for later," he complained, knowing that she was more than anyone right in that argument and denying it was far from his reach.

"Then" She inquired.

"I am not sure I can handle that question" He admitted, sounding sincere. "If I do, I don't want to disappoint my parents, they have always traced the path of my life without my opinion, I just accepted it because nothing interested me. I've always been like this, Kotoko, having a life without effort" He noticed that her eyes fell on him intensely, which made him nervous. "But, I don't want to access my dad's and mom's plans anymore, I feel like that's not a living"

"You can decide your life" She said forcefully. "Don't be afraid, I will always support your decisions even if others don't, because I trust Naoki-kun"

He curved the corner of his lips in a sideways smile, a wave of pride overwhelmed him, being taken into account. Of course she would support him, she had told him that she loved him and that they are friends even if he had other intentions, but he would make sure she changed her mind about him in the future.

"I want to be a doctor." He remembered that phrase he confessed in the past. "And I want to do that for the rest of my life."

"I'm glad to hear that from you." She smiled proudly.

"I'm going to take the career transfer exam and I will start the following year with my studies in the medical department," He said as a reminder to keep his word by making her witness that event. "I will try to tell Dad when I had been transferred to the medical area, because if I tell him now he will force me to go to work in Pandai in order to convince me otherwise, that is why I prefer to take the reins in the matter and then tell him later"

"Yes, I like that plan" She said convinced. "But, don't leave it for later, because I don't want you to regret your decision. Don't leave the matter around so much when you already know what to do"

"Neither do I think of falling into my mother's trap" He mentioned disturbed, covering himself more abundantly between the blankets, feeling her leisurely breath beneath his. "She wants you and I to be a couple, but I won't let her have the way she wants, because I want to have control of my love life too, so if I like someone, I'll do it my way" Seeing that she didn't answer, he kept talking. "If I pleased her, I won't get her off and I will be her puppet all my life. She will always make fun of me and if I don't do it her way, I will be able to at least have that freedom and to be able to choose what I want for my life and enjoy it in the process" He stopped when he saw that she was sleeping peacefully at his side, her eyelids closed, showing her brown and thin eyelashes, her slow and deep breathing where the sweet smell of her natural aroma came from. "You always do that at the important moments," He whispered, turning in the middle so he could see her at a better angle, sighing affably contemplating her sleeping while he thought of all the facets and how about her. The most beautiful was asleep.

Everything stood out in natural beauty, the strands of black hair blocking the eyebrows and part of the ears, a small smile coming out of her small, thin, pink lips. The pink cheeks were more visible when she slept and even more when she exercised.

That image of her would be recorded in his head for the future, in case she rejected him when he confessed to her, he could console herself with the images of the moments that they lived together thanks to his photographic memory.

"Good night." It was the last thing he said before he got carried away by Morpheus' arms.

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**P.D. **(Mention to the song "Corazón delator" from Soda Stereo)


	8. Being together makes life more beautiful

He didn't know how or when, but all he knew was that having slept there in the right time and space was beneficial for his mental health. Being in the company of the girl he liked by the mere fact of seeing her he felt refugee, now sleeping in the same bed, it was the best prize he could have obtained throughout his life.

He hadn't slept entirely without resting, but that night was the exception, since he could sleep peacefully inside his little protection bubble.

Although he reiterated that he dreamed absolutely nothing in all the time he was asleep, he only felt some movements in bed that meant that she had bad sleeping habits, but that didn't bother him because he felt accompanied.

Having woken up, the first thing he did was to turn to the side where she was, what he didn't expect was that she was no longer there. She disappeared.

Where could she have gone?

He took off the blankets in a subversive movement and standing up, he came across the image of her exercising on the floor of the apartment wearing her basketball pants. She was doing push ups.

"Kotoko" He called, feeling relieved to have seen that it wasn't a dream what happened last night.

"Good morning" she looked at him sideways, she looked focused, counting the push ups, so he didn't want to interrupt. "I saw Yuuki-kun" She said, between agitated puffs.

"How is he?" He ended up sitting on the edge of the bed, still with the tachycardia of not seeing her up close.

"Asleep" She stopped of the edge of the hundred push ups, she stood up, and started doing squats. "I came back after putting a few ornaments in the room where they put him, I thought he would be awake but he was so asleep that he didn't even listen to me" She laughed in the precise movement of the squats, sounding agitated by the physical activity.

Suddenly he got an idea, maybe a little crazy and weird of his person, but if he wanted to conquer her, he needed to put himself on battle.

"Kotoko" He called again, catching the girl's attention. "Do you mind if I make breakfast?" He suggested simply with the monody that characterized him.

"What?" She stopped at the middle of the count, her eyes bulging. "Prepare breakfast? Do you know how to cook?" He nodded. He had never cooked in his life. "Then go ahead" She pointed to the kitchen, where a small stove eagerly awaited him and the pans invited him to be used. He swallowed a little nervously, but he needed to do his part if he wanted the rest to work.

Apparently she had mercy to see him struggle to find the ingredients because she told him that in a drawer on the mantel where the cutlery was, there was a very specific small recipe book of basic preparations of Japanese food.

_Just what I needed, a book with instructions included to prepare the recipes._

He chose the hamburg with roasted vegetables. _Easy pease, I can do this on the first try._

In fact, he mixed the ground beef with the required ingredients of the recipe such as caramelized onion, ground bread, eggs, etc. He soaked and split the vegetables she had in the refrigerator like carrots, spinach, cabbage, etc.

Taking advantage of his intellectual gifts, he gave himself the luxury of preparing tamagoyaki for the first time, achieving it on the first attempt.

The breakfast was ready and the feeling of pride for having triumphed in his first time cooking, he wanted to serve the portion and give to her to be the first person to try his first attempt to cook.

"Breakfast is ready" He warned with a leave of superiority.

He saw that she was finishing her exercise routine and as soon as she finished she threw herself into the chair with a childish expression, ready to devour everything in her path.

"Wow, Naoki-kun, how beautiful your breakfast is," She flattered with her hands on her cheeks, amazed at his feat.

"Of course, don't you know who you're dealing with?" He presumed satisfied he had been bold.

"It looks exactly like the photo of the cookbook," She exclaimed in awe, apparently she wasn't used to eating so well after living alone, that must have been a delicacy for her.

* * *

Having eaten breakfast and washed the dishes, he put on the same clothes the day before being in a better mood and his face showed it when he saw himself in the mirror, because the dark circles and the frustration of his normal gesture were far from being similar.

She put on a black and white striped long-sleeved shirt, a strong red shirt and a black hooded jacket, baggy pants and black military boots.

"Let's see Yuuki-kun." She announced coming out of the door making fists in the air of emotion.

"Looks like you're going to his funeral." He Ironized mockingly.

"Of course not" She put on expression of nervousness. "To the pre funeral" She gossiped naughty. He liked it when she got in that mode.

"You have to bring him flowers"

"And a farewell serenade"

"Playing his favorite songs"

"To never forget him in the other world"

They laughed at having been able to understand each other in the conversation, especially that he didn't laugh with anyone, nor let his guard down.

"He kills us if he finds out about this." She laughed heartily, covering her face with her hands so she wouldn't be so loud. Detail that he thought was adorable.

"He doesn't have to find out." He flirted. "What's more, nobody has to know about these talks." He approached her face that she covered between her small hands with malicious disdain. "It's between you and me, is that clear?" She nodded elbowing.

"You are so strange, Naoki-kun."

"I like my privacy," he said coldly and firmly.

"Then I won't say anything," she assured with a determined expression, the same one with which she swore not to say anything about his desire to be a doctor. "I take it to the grave."

"Then I also plan your funeral?" He ironized flirtatiously, looking at her with raised eyebrows.

"Naoki-kun!" She pushed him with her shoulder in shame at the insinuation of him.

"You don't tolerate anything, Kotoko"

His morning was going great, he was rejoicing in pure joy and fullness of being accompanied and walking at her pace, sharing moments as if they were a newlywed couple. If things went well, he wouldn't doubt that in a few months she would end up falling in love with him.

* * *

They entered the room where they put his bother after operating him, fortunately it was a successful operation and he would have a week of total rest.

"Onii-chan!" The boy screamed with joy when he saw him enter.

"And you don't greet me, brat?" An indignant Kotoko crossed her arms with her mouth open in disbelief.

"What do you want, Baka?" The boy wrinkled his nose in mocking discomfort.

"After I save your life, you have the nerve to ask me what I want" She continued the same way.

"Yuuki, how have you been treated in the hospital? Are you okay?" He interfered wiping they didn't fight much, because the other bed was occupied in the same room and making too much noise would be a lack of education for the other patient.

"Onii-chan" The child's orbs crystallized. "I wanted you to come for me, I miss Oka-san and Otou-san, but more to my Onii-chan." He extended his arms for him to hold him. As a good brother, he obeyed this gesture.

"Oh, how cute, Yuuki-kun, I didn't know that side of you" She said, enduring her laughter. "You're so cuddly" She laughed heartily inside the room, causing Yuuki to get rid of the courage and he just let go of the hug and kept an eye on the actions she manifested, he didn't mind her laughing at his brother.

"Leave me alone, Baka!" The boy snapped angrily, wielding his fists. "I will give you your lesson"

Instead of stopping, she laughed more eagerly, putting her hands to her stomach.

"Oh, that's scary" She snorted with laughter.

Suddenly, the other patient on the side stretcher moved, gleaming a small dark head and little hands carried to his face, rubbing the orbs of his eyes.

"Silence, silly, there are other patients trying to rest," He interjected in his male voice, causing her to shut up slowly.

"Other ... patients?" She made a confused gesture, arching her eyebrows sideways. He nodded, sitting with his arms crossed in haughty pose.

"Learn to look." He complained, although inside he was delighted to see her various expressions.

The little body of the patient next door got off the stretcher, putting on the hospital slippers, carving his eyes wearily, yawning with a big mouth. She jumped in surprise.

"If it's another brat," she exclaimed in amazement.

"You don't let me sleep," the little boy replied with a fragile and tender little voice.

"See, Baka" Yuuki complained, rolling his eyes.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know there was anyone else here" She apologized with a coarse bow. They boy laughed with pleasure. She made a confused gesture. "What's up, little brat?"

"I'm Nobu-chan, not little brat" He laughed in his small voice, with a shy gesture.

"Nobu-chan, I'm Aihara Kotoko." She introduced herself with a leap of joy and a broad bright smile, glueing her face to the child's, causing him to blush with shame. "You can call me Kotoko"

"Em, and who are you?" He asked nervously. The boy's straight black hair was not shiny like the girl's and his skin was pale and looked like a small body.

Kotoko took off from the boy's shy face, smiling confidently.

"The bedridden brat is Irie Yuuki." She pointed at Yuuki who was complaining about the way he presented it. "The smart one over there is Irie Naoki." He nodded to the greeting, politely.

"I'm not a brat," Yuuki boasted annoyingly.

"Of course you are," she said with her hands to her sides.

Little Nobu-chan laughed shyly.

"You are much cuter than the ungrateful over there," Kotoko pointed at Yuuki with a grimace of disgust, then shook the boy's hair.

"How did you call me?" Yuuki scolded.

"—The ungrateful over there, any problem?—" She replied in Spanish.

"Wow, what language is that?" Asked the boy with wide eyes, taking the girl's arm as a shield.

"Spanish." She looked at him with an engrossed face. "Have you heard?" Nobu-chan denied.

"Thank heaven there is someone like that," Yuuki said praising the sky.

She stomped, gushing like a tantrum child.

"Don't listen to them, Nobu-chan." She spoke to him in a low, clear voice. "It's a beautiful language and is known as one of the languages of romance" The boy's wide eyes did not take off from her, it seemed that he wanted to eat her alive.

"Hey, Kotoko-san, do you have a boyfriend?" The boy asked, pulling the girl's arm, causing a nervous tick in Naoki when he saw his little hand touching her in despair.

"No, why?"

"You said one of the languages of romance," he pointed out with bulging eyes. "I was wondering if you had someone to talk to him like that?"

"Those things are for later." She shook her hand in the air. "Why don't you tell us the reason you're here?" She took Nobu-chan's hand, taking a seat next to Naoki in the empty chair and the boy took possession of Kotoko's legs. "Not like the brat over there." She looked at Yuuki, sticking her tongue out childishly.

"I have a kidney problem," said the sad boy. "It's incurable, so I'm always in the hospital."

"Don't tell me," she sighed in surprise.

"Kotoko, why are you shutting him up?" Naoki snapped, disturbed to see that Nobu-chan took confidence with the girl and that irritated him. "And Nobu-chan, you better stand up to stretch your legs a little"

The boy obeyed Naoki with terrified eyes after hearing the cold voice of genius and the haughty pose that did not let anyone glimpse.

"I didn't shut him up, Naoki-kun, it was just an expression." She explained with a frown, and then paid attention to what Nobu-chan would say. "You can continue"

"Well, there is no more," he said shyly, putting his hands to his cheeks rubbing nervously.

"Looks like you're not even going out to see the sunlight," she said incredulously. "It can even be said that you have no aspect of enjoying life"

"Hey, don't be rude to the boy's illness," Naoki scolded, brushing his shoulder a little with hers, wanting to pretend he rested his head on the wall.

She shrugged, surprised.

"I just say it doesn't seem to let him have fun," she explained, keeping calm. "Tell me, Nobu-chan, is it true that your illness has no cure?"

"Didn't you hear what he said?" He snapped, rolling his eyes and grinding his teeth. She elbowed him with a grimace of disgust.

"It's not curable," Nobu-chan said.

She meditated a few seconds before saying.

"Well, I think they're pure stupidities." She complained, shaking her head.

"Baka don't give him ideas," Yuuki said alarmed.

"Don't mess with us, brat." She warned aggressively, causing Nobu-chan to shrug. "Nobu-chan." She lowered her tone, looking at him amicably. "What I meant was that it would be better if you enjoyed every day no matter what, Do you know what I mean?" The boy nodded quietly. "But, there is a medicine that heals everything," she said with mischief. "Can I tell you what it is?" The boy was embarrassed, with bulging eyes like a frog. "Rock." She boasted.

"That's not medicine," Yuuki complained.

"But you listen to it" She defended. Naoki couldn't help drawing a mocking smile with the comment. "Rock heals everything, it's the best medicine like laughter." She raised her hand, fingers on her fist, raised one. "If you feel sad, listen to rock." She raised two. "If you feel angry, listen to rock." She lifted three fingers. "If you feel happy, listen to rock." She lifted four fingers. "If you feel in love, listen to rock." She lifted five fingers. "If you don't have a concise emotion, listen to rock for no reason." She assured with utmost confidence and a wide smile of pride. "It's my cure to all my discomforts and the reason I'm always so energetic."

The boy's eyes were so exorbitant that he looked like strabismus, however, Naoki was fascinated with the presentation of Kotoko about music. Simple, but clear. He loved to hear her talk about a topic without being specific.

"She's right," Naoki said serious. She looked at him with her luminous face, delighted with his comment.

"Onii-chan!" His younger brother said indignantly. "Well it's true," he admitted defeated with his head bowed. "Rock is the best medicine"

"You see, it's true," She assured with her thumb up.

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**P.D. **A new chapter uploaded, finally! Hope it is your liking and please enjoy it.


	9. Small challenges

For the next few days that he and Kotoko went to the hospital to visit Yuuki and Nobu-chan, they began to listen to music while Naoki gave Nobu-chan's elementary room counseling for repeating elementary room having ten years, due to his kidney disease

His parents returned at noon that day when he woke up in the girl's apartment, so they also ran into the hospital when they visited, but their hours were not the same for the reason that their classes changed schedules.

Naoki noticed in those days that Nobu-chan developed a certain attachment to Kotoko, because he was stuck when she showed him some cassettes and taught him how to use a walkman. He felt childish for being envious that the child could stick to her without being ashamed of it.

Adding that the same day he left the university he met Watanabe, who told him what happened with Kotoko. The thing did not end there, because Kotoko interrupted the talk almost at the end for the fundamental reason of clarifying to Watanabe that she wanted to remain his friend, despite having rejected him.

They concluded to remain friends as long as they continued to frequent; Naoki felt irritated, and a wave of unpleasant sensations surrounded him from head to toe.

Why didn't she realize his feelings?

* * *

Two days before he released his brother, he took advantage of the fact that he had no classes until the afternoon and visited the hospital with hopes of bumping into the girl. Disappointed not to see her, he sat in his usual chair ready to keep company with the two children who talked about trivial topics and some music themes.

"Naoki-san," Nobu-chan called. "Does Kotoko-san like flowers?"

He looked up, surprised at the question, raised his eyebrows.

"What?"

"Flowers, does she like them?" He insisted nervously, rubbing his fingers in circles.

"That Baka doesn't like them," His brother replied with dismay.

"She has never mentioned that she liked them." He frowned in suspicion. "What's with the question?"

"I want to ask her to marry me," he screamed eagerly.

"What did you say?" His brother spoke openmouthed.

Naoki got rid of the chair, how on earth was he thinking of doing that? Obviously Kotoko would reject him, but what if she considered the proposal?_ No_, he shook his head, tensed his jaw, grinding his teeth in courage. That child turned out to be much bolder than him, and he who hadn't even dared to invite her out on a date alone for trusting that she will remain single during her life.

"Do you know that she will reject you?" His brother continued trying to get Nobu-chan out of his mind. "You are insane if you ask her for marriage if she is a clumsy adult"

Nobu-chan ducked his head in overwhelm, continued circling with his fingers in the palm of his hand, swallowing hard.

"But ... I like her," he snapped into his small, fragile voice. "Kotoko-san is pretty and I want to ask her to marry me." He drew strength to say so.

"You make a mistake," Yuuki insisted in a scolding way. "That Baka belongs to Onii-chan since a long time"

"Who belongs to Onii-chan?" Kotoko entered the room with a mischievous smile. The three were paralyzed to see her dressed in a well-ironed and stylized navy blue suit according to her body, she wore black dress shoes, her hair gummed out, highlighting the wide and luminous rosy face that she was characterized.

"Where are you going like that?" Yuuki was the first to break the silence.

Naoki was so dumbfounded that his heart was beating at full speed, his hands sweating and his head working a thousand times an hour. He wanted to run to her and tell her that she was beautiful but he couldn't do that, since they still didn't have that kind of intimate relationship to tell her that kind of thing, and more, in public.

"Kotoko-san, you're very pretty today," Nobu-chan praised her with a small flushed face. She turned around, showing the suit excited by the flattery.

"I'm going to a movie conference." She showed off dancing with her head, unaware of the boy's intentions.

"Why film?" Nobu-chan wanted to know.

"Because I study cinema"

"Wow, that's why you know a lot about movies"

"That's right." She winked confidently. She turned to see the brunette who was still dumbfounded and without taking his eyes off her. "Naoki-kun, how do I look? Don't I look like a film director a little bit." She smiled excitedly.

He nodded, stunned to see her look so cute to her liking.

"Kotoko-san," Nobu-chan interrupted, pulling the girl's arm somewhat insistently.

"Tell me" The boy's face flushed.

"Do you think you can come in the afternoon? I want to tell you something important," he replied urgently.

"And why don't you tell me now?" She snapped with raised eyebrows.

"But I want to do it alone," he demanded with desperate eyes. Naoki, rolled his eyes, shaking his head. _That damn demanding kid, Kotoko tell him no._

"So important is that you can't tell me?" She said incredulously. "My conference is all day until night, tell me now." She sounded blunt, freeing herself from the boy's jerk.

Nobu-chan, tried to arm himself with courage to express what he wanted to convey, Naoki watched him suspiciously carrying his haughty air inside the classroom, crossed his arms, he was on the verge of standing up and asking the question that the child was forced by want to explain himself.

_Don't you dare, Nobu-chan, Kotoko won't be yours .._. He blew angrily. _And not to anyone else._

Yuuki, made an impatient gesture.

"I wanted to ask you if ..." He was trapped by the same nervousness.

"If, what?" Kotoko was impatient as was Yuuki, but for other reasons.

"If you want to marry me," he confessed quickly, tense as he released those words.

Kotoko remained incredulous.

"Marry me?" She said in a quiet voice.

Nobu-chan nodded with his eyes closed, his face flushed like tomato. Yuuki snorted in annoyance and impatience, shaking his head in wide denial while Naoki was about to burst with irritation from hearing those words directed towards the girl he liked.

"I'm sorry, but I'll have to tell you no," She said calmly and seriously.

Nobu-chan ducked his head immediately disappointed by the girl's response, to which she was shocked to see him in that state.

"Don't put on that face." She repaired alarmed. "What I mean is that we better be friends, right?"

"But I like you, Kotoko-san," the boy implored with teary eyes. She clenched her teeth with her eyes wide.

"Damn," She murmured in panic.

"I told you it was a bad idea to ask that Baka to marry you" Yuuki interjected with his arms crossed.

"Did you know?" She questioned in disbelief. The two nodded, although Naoki was about to break whatever was in his path.

"Sometimes being so Baka is not good," Yuuki said presumptuously, causing her to watch him scrutinely.

"Don't insult Kotoko-san," Nobu-chan screamed with teary eyes about to seep tears from them. Kotoko leaned forward to hug the child with discretion, rubbing his head.

"You're a very pretty boy, Nobu-chan," she said with certainty in her tone. "Despite the little time we have to meet, you are an excellent child."

Nobu-chan's little arms caught her in the hug and hid her little head in the girl's arms in a moving scene. Even Yuuki remained silent without insulting or saying grotesque comments. Naoki remained silent with his heart clenching in his chest, tiny needles pinching the skin in vibrations of pain. _There are always others who speak more than me, if I continue like this I may lose my chance._

* * *

The day he would be discharged from his brother had arrived with a clear sky and fresh winds in the atmosphere that encouraged him to warm himself comfortably because the nights were cold.

Naoki did not consider that an impediment to indulge in not putting a scarf on his neck or gloves to keep his elongated hands warm. He was in a neutral mood, almost monotonous as his natural behavior.

That day he woke up with his head stuck to the pillow, having had a confusing dream. He needed to open his eyes to corroborate that it was a lie. A reverend lie. A product of his subconscious warning him that if he did not take action on the matter he would lose the game.

He went to study a few hours before his classes began, he needed to clear his mind in books of basic medicine.

He took the walkman and a Led Zeppelin record, because his neutral mood required good vibes like a good Led Zeppelin album that gave him the remedy he wanted to feel better.

He couldn't afford to lose the game, if he just didn't take the first step.

He was a new player, without experience, and being the player with less knowledge about the rules and conditions to play properly.

Once he finished studying, he went out to refresh his mind with a good lunch from the cafeteria.

"Irie demon." Kin-chan greeted him with his usual insult. He nodded with annoyance.

"Give me lunch C," he asked coldly. "Please"

"Where has Kotoko been?" He ordered to know immediately. "She hasn't come here." He crossed her arms with a serious gesture. "I hope you didn't do anything to her, human fright."

He snorted in annoyance, carrying his haughty pose to demonstrate power and control.

"She was at a conference," He replied monotonously.

When he was about to retire, Kin-chan held him by the arm with a strong gesture as if he was not ready to end the conversation.

"Don't play with me, genius." He frowned. "Tell me where Kotoko has been"

"I'm not playing with you." He got out of touch, irritated, snorting air of courage. "Believe what you want"

"Stupid genius!" He exclaimed annoyed, the student's eyes fell on them, watching the exchange.

"Hm." He left the place, moving away from that shouty little guy, his head stunned due to the final shout that determined the end of the conversation. Of course he had told the truth, and more than anything, it wasn't his problem if the monkey-face didn't want to believe him.

* * *

"It was a pleasure talking with you these days," Yuuki said with eyelids drooping.

"I say the same, you have been a good friend during this short time we had to meet each other," Nobu-chan added, noticing in the jaw that he endured the urge to cry. "Irie Naoki-san, it was a pleasure talking with you and helping me with my studies"

He nodded.

"I say the same, anything you want, you know you can call me." He meant confidently, but his typical monotonous voice came out.

"Kotoko-san, wait for me," the boy announced with an air of wanting to look strong. "I will grow up and become a strong man for you."

Ms. Irie gave a shriek of excitement and surprise that caused Kotoko to jump the fright.

"Oh, Onii-chan, you already have competition," she said mischievously.

"Really?" Kotoko leaned to her knees, bringing her face close to the boy's. "The truth is that I became fond of you, you are adorable." She kissed him on the cheek, causing a remarkable blush on it. "If you were ten years older, of course I would go out with you." She hugged him tightly in her short but strong arms on contact; the chestnut gritted his teeth wanting to be in Nobu-chan's place, being taken between that sweet aroma and the warm direct contact with that girl.

"Kotoko-san, I love you so much." The boy tightened his grip on the hug, hiding his face on the girl's chest. She rubbing the black and straight hair of the child.

"Oni-chan, Nobu-chan has more initiative than you," his mother whispered.

"Mom, don't be reckless," Naoki complained, grinding his teeth.

Yuuki appearing to be strong, rushed to hug the two who seemed to not take off at any time.

"Come on, mother, let's leave them alone." He took her arm because she would surely want to film the scene and rubbing it in his face in front of the family, presuming Nobu-chan had more initiative than he did. "Don't bother them," he ordered coldly and firmly.

"Oni-chan!" She said offended.

"Don't you see they need time alone?" He inquired with his eyebrow raised, taking his mother by force to give them some time alone.

_I know I am upset because Nobu-chan has much more courage than me, but I will not deny that those three created a strong bond that would be cruel to destroy._

_This separation is only the beginning of a friendship._

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**P.S.** I apologize if I delayed in posting a new chapter but I was very busy with my other stories and I wanted to focus on them first, but I didn't forget this one, since I am still posting it.

Hope that you like this chapter, it is long, and I will post more chapters this long, or at least try.


	10. Uncertain Christmas

_"__Sometimes I can't deal with loneliness"_

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The cold winter invaded the streets of Tokyo, both day and night, so that the habit of the residents consisted of sheltering and taking great care to survive the climatic conditions because diseases such as the common cold would be the trigger of canceling the Christmas parties and have a good time with family.

For Irie Naoki, the weather meant getting warm, drinking hot and bitter coffees both at university and at home, and being as long as possible on the war arms of his bed.

The events between his brother and Nobu-chan stayed in the past, being part of what he now called: taking the initiative.

He certainly didn't know what he needed to take the initiative, he just knew that he had to pass the transference to the medicine department in order to concentrate fully on wining Kotoko's heart.

Those cold days he went out to take walks in the streets with hopes of finding a place where he could read and have a good hot and bitter cup of coffee.

Fortunately, he had found one where there was no employee named Akisuki Nara.

He took a seat in a far corner of the rest of the clients, being one of the frequent ones in that local cafeteria of little space, however, he was reassured to be able to relax and study at the same time.

He was planning to take the career transfer test the summer of text, as he had lost the opportunity to take the winter exam to transfer to the medical department. Despite his mistake, he was certain that with his prodigious brain and study time in that cafeteria he could pass the exam with excellent, almost perfect grades.

When he got bored of studying, he just closed his eyelids and put play on the walkman and his worries went overboard.

_Soon,_ he told himself, _I will soon be happy by her side._

* * *

One of those days, with little to go before Christmas, he returned home saddened to have had a fatal session of studying of medicine and that the coffee that day didn't work in the least. The accumulated sleep and stress of not moving forward with his plans frustrated him at unexpected levels.

"I'm home" He warned upon entering his house, after inserting the key into the lock.

"Onii-chan" His mother received him with animosity. Something in that animosity led hin to question what was happening. "We have a visitor" She replied pleased.

Kotoko appeared with some Christmas decorations hanging from her shoulders and hand, with matted hair and a red Christmas ugly sweater —similar to the one she wore last year, but this time, it has no santa claus, if not, some brown reindeers—.

He could see at first glance that she was fascinated by the Christmas parties.

"Naoki-kun, hello" She greeted with a sideway smile. "I came to help Oba-sama decorate the house for Christmas"

"Oh, I see" He said coldly, although inside he was full of joy to see her after a few days without hearing from her.

"You don't want to help us?" His mother asked with stinging eyes.

"I pass" He took a seat on the living room sofa, taking a magazine from the rectangular center table.

"What a party pooper" His mother said with disappointment. "Onii-chan never wants to do anything"

"Don't worry, Oba-sama" She said. "Here you have lots of help to put the decorations" She made a gesture of strength.

"Kotoko-chan, you're so cute" She hugged her with affection and kissed her on the head of the girl who was looking at her uncomfortably for the show of sudden affection. "And helpful"

He stuck on the couch during the time that the two women decorated the house with Christmas decorations. Putting spotlights on the walls (some of light bulbs), Christmas trees on the doors, placing the large artificial tree in the room where he could see how she was trying to put her film touches on the happy tree.

_I don't care if she likes to decorate the tree like that, while she looks so happy and energetic, the rest doesn't matter to me._

He looked at her at that moment with intensity, yearning to be reciprocated with the gesture of tenderness that he expressed hidden in his sorrows.

"Kotoko-chan, we'll have a Christmas party in Pandai, don't you want to come?" His mother wanted to know. The bulging eyes and the typical insistence implied that she had other intentions with them both. Nothing good came from his mother's crazy ideas.

"Party in Pandai?" She repeated curiously. His mother nodded with emotion and her hands like fists at chest height. "I have a meeting with my friends."

"How?" She made a sad face.

"Well, they said that, but I want to spend Christmas with Chibi." She smiled happily, her teeth gleaming.

"Better pass it with Onii-chan." She suggested as persuasively as possible.

She meditated a few seconds with her eyes towards the ceiling.

"Naoki-kun, what do you think?" She turned to him with curious eyes, taking him off guard with a staggered mind to other different directions.

"Say yes," his mother insisted in shrieks.

"'Say yes' to what?" He asked, not fully aware of the situation he was in.

"If you want to spend Christmas with me," Kotoko suggested willingly.

He blushed instantly, assimilating the phrase "you want to spend Christmas with me" of course he would be insane if he didn't accept it. But his mother would harass him to exhaustion if he agreed, so his easiest option and for his displeasure, he would have to deny it.

"No." He articulated trying to sound willing and forceful in his decision.

"No?" She assimilated, turning her eyes and her eyebrows arched. "Ok." She smiled sideways, resigning herself to formulating other plans in a low voice.

"No! Onii-chan! What's wrong with you?" He was scolded by his mother with disappointment. "You have the opportunity to date Kotoko-chan and you reject her"

_If they knew my feelings_, he said he was down.

"Leave me alone mother"

"But Onii-chan!" She grumbled annoyed.

He left the room sorry for saying no.

* * *

He woke up in a mood more drier than the Sahara desert.

Head stuck to the pillow, slow and leisurely breaths, dry mind and tired of thinking about the happy plan that perhaps would not execute in their right mind.

_I don't want to go to that silly dad party, I don't plan to go._

He lamented having to be the son of a businessman of great importance who turned out to be famous. He wanted to have been born with a father like Kotoko's, who didn't press her for choosing the direction of her life, much less impose her selfish desires on her. I respected her.

Maybe his father loved him too much but not in the right way.

His father loved him to the excesses of wanting to forge him to be the successor of the Pandai company.

It was clearer that the water that he would not be Pandai's successor and would not lead that business lifestyle.

Christmas day welcomed him in a very bad way, a way that slowly degraded him as a degenerative disease of the same mind.

He rarely regretted something he was doing and rightly felt better about not getting involved in matters that did not belong to him, however he regretted saying he said no to Kotoko. It was a bad decision, but who was he to say that all his decisions were

always the right ones? Nobody. A poor and incompetent genius who did not have the courage to demand that which gave him happiness.

_Damn._

_I don't want to get out of bed._

He covered half of his face with the blanket, smelling his own scent within the concentration of oxygen that the blanket and he himself shared in the bed. He sighed hot air puffs, frustrated by his incompetence, with ample desire to pick up the phone and send a message to Kotoko, telling her that he wanted to spend Christmas with her.

I'm a fool if I retract and I don't.

_I want to spend Christmas by her side, so as not to go to Dad's party._

He turned around to the wall of his room, that dark blue color hindered him, reminded him of the sea that she mentioned long ago where he felt like a fish in the water, one that battles to swim and at the same time enjoys the process.

_I would like to be that fish that helps you in the sea._

_Or vice versa, be the one helped._

He chuckled into the blanket, hugging himself and sighing heavily before exhaling calmly. He was blushing at the thought of her and him swimming in the sea like a pair of green and blue fish. Inseparable and happy fish with each other's company.

He imagined they were together, since he couldn't deal with loneliness; that feeling that accompanied him a large part of his life, the same that bordered him to be who he was, the cold boy that everyone respected if they saw him go by.

But, they never knew that he felt desolate, naked as he passed through the halls of the institute, his superior way of walking with his chin up. They meant signs of a person who lived alone.

Part of that feeling derived from the intense desire not to belong to any social group, and if he once tried it was for being silly. However, time always ended up leaking from his hands like sand, and the sky ended up looking as flat as a lake in the sky; that is why he imagined that Kotoko accompanied him everywhere, that he allowed her to take her hand along with the access of having her whole life in her narrow arms of having her for himself.

He did not turn the matter over ... he decided to execute the next action:

He didn't think about it twenty times, he escaped the warmth of the blanket that covered half of his face, picked up the cell phone lying under the bed and sent a text to the girl telling him he was free for Christmas.

_I hope she reads it and answers me. I hope she says yes. I hope all that and more._

_And if she says yes, I will tell Dad that I have an appointment and I will not be able to go to the silly company party. If he finds out that it is Kotoko, he will let it pass because he is Oji-san's daughter. Then there will be no problem. I just need her to answer me._

He went back to bed and covered his hands anxiously, turning from side to side, waiting for his answer.

His mother entered his room after five in the afternoon, shrieking from all sides hurrying him for not being dressed for Pandai's party.

"You've been lying all day," She screamed in dismay. "Get up, Onii-chan, you're not like that."

"What if I don't want to?" He threatened with his head stuck to the pillow, still waiting for the reply to his message.

His mother took away all the blankets and with his cunning managed to make him stand up reluctantly; she took the black suit and a small rose that would be in the pocket of the visible part of the suit.

"You're going to wear it." She ordered severely. "And you will come to the party"

He rolled his eyes in dismay, overwhelmed by having to attend if he didn't want to go because he was sure that girls were going to flirt with him, those daughters of the businessman; obviously he would be the center of attention of the cunning eyes of the girls.

His mother rushed out of the room to finish fixing Yuuki.

He checked his cell phone one more time before putting on his suit, looking at himself with violent eyes, his crazy hair, implying that he had grown in that period of time where he had barely accepted his feelings.

Finishing dressing, he adjusted his black tie in impeccable perfection and his well-brushed brown hair, highlighting his gray eyes. His cell phone began to vibrate.

"Moshi Moshi"

"Naoki-kun," Kotoko's voice answered hurriedly. "I just saw your message"

"It took you a while to answer," He replied in an annoyed voice. He was content to have received that call.

"Jinko canceled me, Satomi I don't know," She said with an agitated voice, she seemed to be running. "I'm going to my apartment."

"Is it a yes? Or a no?" He demanded to know, he wanted to know more than anything at that moment.

"I'll call you when I get to my apartment, I've barely left work," She hung up.

The silence of the other line echoed in his ear, stumbled confused in the girl's meaningless words. She had said yes or no?

"Oni-chan!" His parents yelled at him.

"I'm coming" he shouted back.

"The limo has arrived," his brother exclaimed anxiously.

He will wait to wait for the silly party, he would go reluctantly and then he would run away in case she called him and told him that she would receive him in her apartment with open arms.

He got into the limousine, sneaking his wallet and cell phone well charged, in case he got the call.

_I'll wait for you Kotoko, call me quickly to get to you._

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**P.S.** (Mention to the song "Lago en el Cielo by Gustavo Cerati)

**NOTE:** A Christmas chapter! I'm glad to have translated this more sooner than I expected. Please enjoy!


	11. Christmas at your side

_"I ran to reach you and beat the sordid thirst [...] I did it for you, for you I had the courage"_

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He was in the hotel lobby where the silly party would take palce.

Naoki waited irritably for his father to indicate them that they could enter the party upstairs. He gritted his teeth from the rage of being in that place.

When he turned to the elevator for pure coincidence, he ran into Kotoko's blond friend walking in the arms of an attractive boy carrying a bouquet of flowers for her.

That was the confirmation that Kotoko would indeed spend Christmas alone in her apartment, her dad won't attend the party because he would have work until late at night.

_She's alone. Then I will go. I don't need her call, I'll go to her by surprise. _

_I want to see the look on her face when she sees me at the door of her apartment. She will be adorable. _

His brother watched with fascination the huge Christmas ornaments hanging in the lobby's chandeliers, lights that changed color every second and many woman with low-cut dresses showing their voluptuous curves and other feminine attributes.

"If Kotoko-chan were here," His mother sighed disappointedly.

"Mom, leave her" He grumbled at the expense of his secret plan.

"You are so bad Onii-chan" She pouted. "At least show her that you love her"

_I am doing that, mother, I will see her in a little while._

He rolled his eyes, longing to get out of that elegant place with superficial woman who didn't compare to his little basketball player that he admired so much and liked so much.

"If that Baka were here" His brother glared at him in complicity. "She wouldn't stop talking about the decorations and the classical music" He laughed maliciously, but he just nodded. _Yes, she would probably do that. _

While at the silly party, he tasted the bad taste in his mouth as he listened to the same sermons of his father's businessman telling him that it would be a pleasure to work with him in the future. He was only moved to nod stunned to hear the same thing several times.

A few businessmen introduced him to his beautiful daughters, beautiful muses that might seem goddesses of Olympus, however none shook him as his favorite girl does. _My Kotoko does not compare with these women._

He drank some champagne, unwilling to spend more time in that business martyrdom that his father submitted and decided to escape excusing himself from going to the bathroom.

_Goodbye father, it was a pleasure to be your puppet, but now I'm going with my future girl._

* * *

He hurried out of the elegant hotel, rushed to order a taxi to get to the girl's apartment; along the way he got fried chicken from KFC and a Christmas chocolate cake (her favorite flavor). With everything ready, he arrived at Kotoko's apartment with grace and subtlety from the taxi driver, who turned out to be an excellent driver.

Grateful for that detail, he tipped the taxi driver and strode forward to the third floor.

He knocked firmly on the door, wielding his hand. _Please open me._

He sighed nervously. The door opened giving a Kotoko in a half-dressed waiter's suit, a buttoned white shirt and black pants. She opened her eyes wide. She slammed the door, leaving him stunned.

Didn't she wanted to see him?

The door opened again with the same wide open eyes and openmouthed.

"Naoki-kun!" She exclaimed perplexed.

"Why did you close the door?" He complained while standing outside.

"I thought it was my imagination" She laughed embarrassed, putting a hand on the back of her neck shaking her hair. "Come in". She gave him space to enter the apartment, closing the door behind him.

"Don't be a Baka" He pretended to be bothered.

He showed her the bag where he had the content of the things he bought along the way. The fried chicken and the chocolate cake.

"Did you bring it for me?" Her mouth dropped open, amazed.

"Don't be so vain" He scoffed, taking a seat in the dining room.

"Thank you so much for bringing me some dinner" She put a hand on his shoulder, thankful, which made him tremble inside. "By the way, I didn't call you because I thought you were at your father's party, did you get out of there? Or did you just come straight here?" She opened the fried chicken from the package, sitting in front of him with her hair covering her eyes.

"I escaped from there" He said a little irritated to remember that place.

"Wasn't it fun?" She looked interested in his answer. He denied.

"It was boring" He pursed his lips with rage. "It looked like a blind date, everyone introduced me to their daughters, it was so annoying"

"What a bummer"

"Right now dad will be mad with me for escaping, but I don't care" He shook his head, moving away the bad vibes of the previous anger and focused on what was the reason as to why he escaped the party. "And you? What about you? I thought your friends had a strong and lasting friendship" He tried to make fun of her, but she lowered her head saddened.

"They left with their boyfriends" She rolled her eyes, with a grimace of disgust. "Those girls!"

She devoured the chicken as a frenzy demolition machine, she offered him at times if he wanted to eat too because she was uncomfortable if she ate alone; meanwhile, he began to look at the decorations of the apartment, a bit lacking in colors and organization. It looked very empty and he came to think that maybe there were moments where she was sand when she was alone.

He ate some pieces of chicken with some tea she gave him,

_Maybe she hasn't eaten anything, that's why she devoured almost half of the chicken I brought her._ He chuckled.

"Naoki-kun, you're very cute" She said after she finished eating.

"Me?" He said incredulous, wanting to her her say it again.

"Yes" She nodded laughing. "Pretty cute"

_No Kotoko, you are the cute one._

"I don't say the same" He grumbled haughtily. "Loot at yourself, you look like a man eating like that"

She looked offended, frowning, clenching her lips.

"Man, did you tell me?" A head blow was what he received from the girl.

"Kotoko, you can't stand anything" He put a hand to his head, rubbing the blow. _Tremendous blow she gave me. _

"You can't stand anything either" She concluded haughtily, moving from her side to side in the chair.

"Baka" He exclaimed offended.

"I like it when you get like this" She laughed with her hands over her mouth, changing her offended expression to a sultry one.

He blushed immediately upon learning that she liked to see him in that state, although he preferred that she told him that she liked to see him smile or that his great physical attractiveness pleased her.

"By the way, I have your gift" She announced with her hands in applause. "I'm going for it" He nodded, taking a sip of tea that was still hot. The girl opened the closet where she placed her clothes, taking out a cardboard bag, inside the cardboard bag was a gift wrapped for him. "Here" She shrugged anxiously to see him open the gift.

Removing the wrapping was the surprise of being a simple watch with hands and the hours of the day drawn with gold letters and the contours of the clock were gold the same. Under the clock was a cassette inside its plastic box, it had an engraving that said **"songs for Naoki-kun".**

"The cassette" He spoke coldly, watching the cassette from the sides. She nodded proudly.

"Yes, I could finally finish it" She applauded, satisfied with her work. "I put some songs, not all of them will be to your liking, but it's a good playlist" She justified with raised eyebrows and tight lips of emotion.

"Thank you" He concluded in a serious voice, absolutely happy to receive a good gift. "I didn't bring you anything"

"Of course you did, you kept me company in Christmas" She defended herself in dismay. "That counts as a gift" He nodded with a discreet smile on his lips.

He put the watch on his right wrist, the cassette he put it in his suit pocket._ I will listen it at night. _

"Do we slice the cake?" She suggested with wide eyes towards the embedded cake that rested in the kitchenette.

"Go ahead" He said, adjusting the watch on his wrist for comfort.

"Wow, it's fabulous" She said looking at it from all sides wide-eyed. "What flavor is it?"

"Chocolate"

"Oh my favorite!" She jumped once sitting in the chair with the cake in the center of the table. _Of course I know your favorite flavor, but I won't tell you that detail._

"Slice it then" He said.

She nodded, splitting it with the cutting blade.

The cake was covered with vanilla bitumen, Santa's decorations on the top, some strawberries at the top of the cake, the semi-bitter chocolate center with a deli and decadent smell.

They ate it right away, without saying a word, so that the silence that soon invaded them prompted the talk as soon as possible, but nevertheless the brunette did not dare to start a conversation that might not come to anything. He was afraid of being discovered with respect to his deepest feelings, if she caught him too early it would be the end of his story.

It can be said that he was between a rock and a hard place. A terribly embarrassing situation, even for a genius of his standards.

"Did the mice eat your tongue?" She teased mischievously when she finished eating the slice of cake.

"Sorry?" He left his thoughts, confused.

"Suddenly, you shut up" She commented wavily. "Something happened?"

"Nothing that concerns you" He snapped, raising an eyebrow.

"You always keep quiet" She said with concern. "I'm intrigued to know what you think"

_Well, I think of you, who else can I think of?_

"I won't tell you what I think" He grumbled stubbornly. He needed to get out of that situation, his emotions betrayed him if he remained on the same subject.

_If you knew Kotoko ... _he told himself crestfallen. _I only think of you._

"If you don't want to tell me, I'll understand." She tried to sound calm, placing a hand on the table. "If you have no one to tell, you know you can always count on me"

"Okay" He nodded, his heart about to pop pout of his mouth, and satisfied that he had left the awkward situation. "You also do the same with me"

"I always do" She shook her head doubtfully. "Well, not always" She laughed embarrassed. "Sometimes I don't know who to tell what I think"

Naoki wondered if perhaps she trusted him with personal information that she not told everyone, whether right or wrong, what he knew about her meant that he was reliable enough.

"If I tell you something interesting you won't tell anyone?" She straightened toward him, confidentially.

"What thing?" He inquired, following the flow.

"Promise me you won't tell anyone," She said._ What will it be?_ Naoki was interested in what she was going to say. He nodded snorting. "I'll take that as a 'yes'"

"Tell me," He demanded to know, getting nervous for some reason.

She approached him from the other end of the seat, her head almost hanging in the center of the table.

"The day the earthquake happened, when I turned homeless." She began with a tremendous restlessness, it seemed that she was eager to tell someone. "I was listening to the song 'Cuando pase el temblor' by Soda Stereo on the walkman, and suddenly the earth moved just when the song was over" She made a jerk of shaking her hands in vibration. "Bam!" She exclaimed with her eyes wide open. "Goodbye house," She concluded with an embarrassed expression. "It's one of those times when strange and somewhat curious things happen to you"

"Is that your anecdote?" He muttered, absorbed in his thoughts.

"Sure," She argued proud of herself. "You are the first to know."

It felt good to know that he was the only one to possess such a secret of her life, an anecdote relevant to her, but for him it was not the big deal. Maybe and he would make fun of that later, but for the moment he would be reserved with the new possession of his life.

"Good to know," he boasted haughtily.

_Spending Christmas by your side is the best thing that could have happened to me in these arduous and silly weeks._

Thus his Christmas concluded with a good taste. He retired from her apartment shortly after she told the story.

It was not expected what the future would bring.

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**P.S.** (Mention to the song "Tabú" by Gustavo Cerati)

**NOTE:** A new chapter here, about Christmas. Hope you have liked it.


	12. The beauty contest

Finishing the holiday season, where he believed things could not be worse. His mother decided to invite Kotoko to spend a few days at home, so that she would not be alone in the next few weeks in which the exams would take place, although of course, she intended that Naoki give her tutoring to spend the year and spend time together.

What his mother didn't know was this: He had been in love with Kotoko for a long time.

It is there when he realized within his reasoning, that the most trivial things become fundamental, and that the most essential sometimes he let it happen. In short, his crush on her, had been born from the beginning, since he looked at her short stature and a determination beyond the precepts imposed by society, something imperceptible that he didn't know and that he may not achieve.

Having lived with her in exam time, he noticed that she had improved a lot in her studies and in understanding the subjects, so his help was not the big deal. Nor spilled drops of despair when he tried to explain a new topic.

On one of those days where they had already returned to class, Kotoko came home annoyed — something odd, in his view — if she was always in excellent mood, talking and singing songs everywhere. But this time she looked quiet. Very quiet for her own good.

He raised his eyebrows in suspicion. What will it be that has her so annoyed? He wanted to cheer her up, but he didn't know how to do it, or deal with it. If he did, he would end up offending her in the worst way and those weren't his intentions.

His mother was more perceptive and approached her.

"What do you have, Kotoko-chan?" She asked her in the living room, where the four: Naoki, Kotoko, and Noriko were present.

"It's not the big deal," She said, turning to see the ceiling solidly, tightening her jaw as if she wanted to hit the first one to cross her on the road.

"Any stupid man confessed to you?" Naoki intervened, feeling pathetic for saying that. But, by all means, he didn't want to look obvious with his feelings.

Kotoko didn't answer, moreover, there was no reaction, more than a disinterested nod and an 'hm' escaped her lips.

"Onii-chan!" His mother looked at him sternly, and then paid attention to Kotoko. "Kotoko-chan, what happened at school for you to be like this?"

"I don't want to talk about it." She grimaced, crossing her arms in a gesture of being angry.

"You will not be angry about 'that', will you?" She pressed to hear her speak; _that? _Naoki wondered what it was what his mother felt was the cause of Kotoko's moodiness. It will have been something great to see her in that state.

"What?" She turned in the direction of her mother, folding her eyebrows in curiosity.

"About the contest." She kept trying to find out the reason for her anger. Naoki was increasingly lost in the conversation.

"Do you know?" She opened his eyes wide.

"Like not?" She snorted with a fanciful expression. "If I nominated you for the 91st beauty pageant!" She gave a shriek of emotion.

_What? _Naoki turned white. Beauty contest? Kotoko?

Kotoko turned pale on her face, stunned by his mother's confession; she clasped her hands, regaining the color of her face in relation to what was confirmed, shaking her head in outright denial and an electric energy emerging at huge speeds from her chest that breathed air for the same reason.

"Why?" Her voice was sullen.

"So you can show everyone how beautiful you are, Kotoko-chan," Noriko replied, jumping with joy with her toes.

Before Kotoko did any recklessness, the house bell rang.

Naoki stood up and went to see who it was. Seeing who the visit came from, he didn't object to letting him in: Mitsuki Ryo.

He wore a light blue t-shirt with a silver spiral in the center that surrounded a large part of the shirt, light blue bermuda shorts with two pockets on both sides, white Nike sneakers with black shoelaces.

His hair looked better than he remembered. In short, the boy had embellished.

"Good evening, Naoki-kun," He greeted, showing an open hand at shoulder height. He nodded.

"What are you coming here?" He asked reloaded at the edge of the entrance of his house. Ryo inhaled oxygen, before saying.

"Is Kotoko here?"

"Yes," Naoki replied.

"I'm coming to cheer her up," He announced innocently. "I heard about the contest and I imagine she is furious about it, right?" Naoki nodded as he raised his eyebrows. "It is a miracle that she has not yet destroyed something, but I know that it is not long before she commits a stupidity." He made a worried face.

"Well," Naoki agreed, stepping back, allowing him to step. "Pass"

"Thank you." He bowed his thanks and entered the house. He took off his shoes, and in that, Naoki realized that he was carrying a plastic bag with some cassettes inside, he estimated that it was about five.

"Kotoko!" Ryo called her confidently. She looked up and turned to him, folding her eyebrows questioningly.

"Ryo!" She exclaimed in amazement. "What are you doing here?" She put her hands on her waist.

"I came to cheer you up." He showed the bag with the contents of the cassettes.

"Really?" Her face lit up in seconds.

It wasn't a lie that he knew how to cheer her up. For a moment, he was envious to see how easily he had encouraged her by just showing her a few cassettes tucked into a plastic bag!

If he had known, he would have bought triple the cassettes just for her.

"Do you want to listen to them?" He suggested good naturally.

"Yes!" She agreed to jump as a child having won a game. "Let's go outside," She said, taking his free arm.

"Kotoko-chan!" His mother spoke with embarrassment. "Who is he?" He pointed uneasily, to which Kotoko gave her a sly look.

"My best friend," She replied proudly, staring at him. "From the first year of middle school"

"Mitsuki Ryo," the boy said politely. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Irie." He made a slight bow, drawing a chivalrous smile, which highlighted his childish and optimistic features that the boy possessed by nature; quite rightly, he was Kotoko's best friend. If they were almost identical in character and child physique.

"Are you sure you come to cheer her up?" She raised an eyebrow suspiciously. Without taking her eyes off him.

"Yes, Mrs." He nodded awkwardly. Kotoko seemed to understand the second intentions that his mother was surely imagining with suspicion and intrigue.

"He is Satomi's boyfriend," She clarified, hurrying out to the backyard.

"Ah." His mother let out a sigh of relief. Her entire tense and attentive expression diminished a little, but not quite. She would not let the thing end like this, most likely she would continue to take the soup from Ryo in order to confirm that between them there was only pure friendship.

"We'll be outside" She said accurately.

They went out through the sliding door of the dining room, without further ado Naoki had been intrigued to know what they would talk about outside or what they would do being alone in the moonlight. He knew they were best friends, but he also couldn't help imagining her with another man and that angered him for the reason that he very clearly felt certain.

Because he wanted her, it made him mad seeing her with another, although Ryo was his best friend.

"Onii-chan" His mother called him with a raised eyebrow.

"What?" He demanded to know, hiding his concern in his mask of indifference.

"Why don't you go check on Kotoko-chan and her" She emphasized the following "'friend'?" Quotation marks. "They are having a good time"

"If you're so worried," Je hid, crossing his arms on the couch. "Why don't you check them?"

"Onii-chan!" She snorted pouting. "You're so unfair," She huffed, stomping.

He was amused to annoy his mother, since she always harassed him with his love life. Sometimes it was good to give her a taste of the same spoon.

"You better check them out, mother." He smiled mockingly , which was consistent with what he said, but not what he felt.

"If you insist." She made a shoulder movement, rolled up the sleeves of the floral ornaments sweater and took out the camera she had when she was spying on Kotoko or him, in any case, at a moderate distance. "I'll check them out from the second floor." She escaped his sight, leaving him alone in the room at the expense of his solemn boredom.

He looked at the ceiling, letting his neck rest suspended on the edge of the sofa, with the intention of calming his mind, which with unfair reasons, gave him ideas about the girl he liked and his best friend. Unpleasant ideas, and therefore, unlikely to happen.

The worst part was that he was not aware of being jealous. Yes, the genius was jealous of those two, and with good reason, because he and she didn't usually be together at all times, even if the thing was that way. They saw each other on a daily basis, since she chose to stay at home during exam time, but there was no other reason why she wanted to go to his side; if there were, she would have told him since she was too honest.

He assumed they didn't usually be together at all times, because she shared her time with each of her family, not exclusively with him. In short, he wanted to be her top priority, but it was just a simple wish that would not be fulfilled at some point.

To console himself, he tried to tell himself,_ it is not as if Kotoko would come and told me to accompany her to the patio, I say..._ the thought went away in a voice as soon as she just appeared in the dining room and noticed her presence.

"Naoki-kun." She mentioned his name casually, taking him off guard and somewhat unfortunate. "Would you want to come with us?" She smiled, revealing her perfectly delineated teeth on her face and her cheeks flushed on bright cheekbones, tempted him big.

"Outside, you say?" He felt pathetic to have asked such a stupid question.

"Yes, where else?" She said extending her smile more, her hands on her waist. "Come." She signaled him to come.

He accompanied her repressing the desire to approach her, because if he did he would give himself away, and considered that it was soon for him to confess.

Similarly, Ryo was present, so he decided to keep quiet in his pathetic state of genius in love.

He sat on his mother's bench, which was painted white and on the edges some details of Swedish ivy surrounded the four legs of the bench, the flowers consisted of roses at the beginning of each step.

Ryo was sitting in the beach reclining chair, orange with yellow lines; Kotoko was sitting in the beach chair of the same color as the other, but on the edge of a lamppost in the house, specifically the one they used in the events that required the use of the backyard.

They listened to music on Kotoko's stereo, looking at the dark sky as if they were looking for the mysteries of the universe encased in the moonlight that lit them jealous of their hidden charms. Naoki compared her for a moment with Kotoko, as she lit up his small world, while inside were the greatest hidden mysteries in her charms, charms he would love to have for him.

"Can you tell why you want me to enter the contest?" She said at odds, shaking her head, clenching her lips.

"Why, you ask?" Ryo inquired ironic. "Well, very easy, because I know you will win." He said it as if it were a sure fact.

She narrowed her eyes incredulously.

"What?" She blew in shock.

"It is obvious that you will win," He declared how a presentation speech. "There is no girl more talented than you, Kotoko, I tell you as your best friend; participate and win! "He pointed her with his index finger, sitting very well planted in the beach chair. "I don't say it as a joke in bad taste, if so, I swear I wouldn't have come to see you"

She was thoughtful, leaning on the pole with her forehead glued to the metal body of the luminaire, one arm hanging on her side and the other on her lap; just like her hair hung from a very thin line where it fell between her shoulders.

"We can deal with this" He continued. "This is nothing compared to the situations we have faced, come on, don't be so negative" He waved his arms in order to cheer her up. "You are not like that, you are Aihara Kotoko! The girl who won the position number fifty in the list of the best students of the entire Tonan High School!, The same one that surpassed even her own marks in the basketball game and made you win closely! The one that ran a five-kilometer marathon just to give Naoki-kun his briefcase" He stopped to catch air.

"I got it," Kotoko burst in, opening her hands at shoulder height.

"What did you understand?" He demanded to know, raising his eyebrows from top to bottom.

"It's okay." She sighed in defeat. "I will participate in the contest"

_What? _Naoki dropped the jaw of disbelief.

"Yes!" His mother's celebration shouts were heard from the second floor window; for a moment he had forgotten that she was watching them with her camera.

"What was that?" Ryo asked in the air, confused.

"Shouts of support!" Kotoko concluded admired by her mother's screams. "I will participate in the contest and win!" She clenched both fists as a sign of determination.

A new challenge was presented ahead.

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**P.S. **I took this from the manga, I gave it a spin, to see if you will like it, I wanted to experiment with the story.

An apology if it takes me a while to upload a chapter, but I was afraid to propose the challenge of putting the beauty contest in the manga in the story and I felt that you would not like to read it because maybe it was implied that I was going around a lot to the story when I wanted to have fun with some chapters of the manga, that is to say, adapt them to the style that has "The songs that define our love", although I affirm that I want to prolong the story to give more depth to the characters because there are missing things to put, to remove, among other. But well, I set it and here it is.


	13. Life decisions

"Wait!" Ryo intervened the brief celebration they had.

"What's wrong?" She stopped with the smile visible on her features.

"We have to plan what we will do to make you win" He said, biting his lower lip in doubt.

A silence surrounded them at those words, while the song "Crema de estrellas" by Soda Stereo accompanied her silence.

Suddenly, a soft, happy voice interrupted the uncertain atmosphere: Kotoko's voice. Yes, she was the one who sang with the lost gesture at any point, but she was still immersed in the message of the song as who would say, recited it with an inner peace that not everyone can achieve.

It was inevitable not to fall at her feet.

Ryo's face lit up as a sign of getting an idea, Naoki rolled his eyes restlessly for not wanting to expose the hidden talent of Kotoko, his not yet girl, to Tonan's students. If they discover her, they might fall in love with her.

"I have it!" Ryo snapped his fingers at the same time he said. "To sing!"

Kotoko paused, surprised with her sudden change of mood.

"What did you say?" She asked confused.

"Keep singing," He ordered, letting out a hand deterring his previous actions. "Don't listen to me."

"Hm, Okay," She replied and soon continued singing the rest of the song without noticing the intense gaze Naoki had fixed on her, wishing to approach her side.

After a while of silence on the part of Ryo, who seemed to be about to explode within his thoughts. Naoki preferred to see Kotoko, who sang the song that was on the album as if nothing was better than that.

Ryo suddenly jumped, frightening Naoki in the meaning.

"Do you have fleas?" Naoki asked annoyed.

"Oh no," The boy laughed, waving his hand in the air. "I got a brilliant idea!" He announced with his index finger held high.

Naoki raised an eyebrow.

"Idea…" He repeated monotonously.

"Yes," Je snorted motivated. "Kotoko will be noticed through singing, it's a great idea!"

"What are you telling me for?" He intercepted.

"Well, you live in the same house as my best friend." He responded with obviousness. "With good reason I tell you, also why don't you help us with the project?" He suggested using both hands together. "It will be fun!"

In truth, that boy was the male version of Kotoko, that statement went through Naoki's mind when he saw how excited he expressed his ideas without being ashamed of what they would say.

"It's not in my interest to participate in beauty contests," He replied sparingly, shaking his head in a disinterested gesture.

"Don't be a party pooper, Naoki-kun." He pouted disappointed with his attitude.

"How much are you talking about?" Kotoko broke into the conversation with a curious appearance.

"Of you," Ryo snapped, wrinkling his nose. "Who else?" He inquired, crossed his arms.

"I don't know, tell me," She said, biting her lower lip and moving her head from side to side in a mocking gesture.

"I know what you'll do for the contest," He said presumptuously.

"What will I do?"

"Sing" He mentioned regardless of what she said about it.

"Eh?" The air of fright faded, her eyes about to leave his orbs.

"What you heard," He said motivated. "With your voice we can compete in the nominee's talent area," He explained, waving his arms. "You have always belonged to the choir group, even if you keep it a secret, one day your acquaintances will know that you know how to sing"

_Wait, what?_ Naoki's mind had become a hotbed of confusing thoughts that took his selection and elimination process; _Kotoko knows how to sing? _No wonder when he heard her singing "Vuelta por el universo" He realized that her voice was soft and went to the beat of the words that were sung.

You could tell there were things he didn't know about her.

He sighed dejectedly for not paying due attention to the girl he loved and admired with suspicion.

"And you think this is the perfect opportunity to do it?" She questioned with a hint of doubt. Ryo nodded. "Well, whatever you say" She agreed without thinking.

How did she agreed so fast? Without much thought, that girl!

Naoki tensed invisibly on the bench, wielding hands the product of the same anger. He didn't want others to know about her talent, that they saw new facets that he just wanted to keep so he wouldn't share them.

He wanted to break Ryo's teeth, the origin of that disastrous idea.

"How do you agreed so fast?" He spoke without thinking. Ryo and Kotoko's eyes fell on him like eagles raised to attack.

"What do you say?" Kotoko said interested.

"You're quick to get his suggestions," He said dismissively. "You don't even think clearly, silly."

"Don't tell her that." Her friend defended her, just like any other of his friends.

"Stop, Ryo." She raised her hands in opposition. "Naoki-kun is right." She gave him the benefit of the doubt. "I haven't thought about it clearly, and what's more, I don't know if I'm able to sing, you know?"

"But of course you are capable of singing," Ryo snorted incredulously. "The important thing is the mentality." He pointed his head in intelligence. "Be determined!" He shoved his hands in the air.

She watched him for a few seconds, blinking, placing a finger under his chin meaning she was thinking about it.

"Well, I've never sung in public just like that." She clarified, raising her eyebrows. "I've always belonged to the choir group since kindergarten, that's why I know how to sing, but till there. ."

He looked at her, analyzing in her fine features some signal or response to his prayers; He needed to make sure that she wouldn't teach secret details to someone other than him, but nevertheless, he knew that things might not go at the same pace he wanted, but he lost nothing by daydreaming.

"But, I trust Ryo" She assured, shaking her head in accordance with her words. "I know he tells the truth, and he wants me to win the contest that Oba-sama signed me up for"

Naoki raised an eyebrow, zero convinced with the ridiculous idea of exposing Kotoko.

"Just don't make a fool of yourself" He warned loudly, about to get up from the bench, but in a sensation he invaded it as if the needles had nailed him to the place where he was, because he didn't exert movements to move from there.

"Of course not!" Ryo intervened completely convinced in his "idea." She, meanwhile, rocked her head close to the pole, running her fingertips through her hair, crossing the contours of her hair that furrowed cautiously from her textures.

The urge to touch her bristled his skin to the very guts.

"Hm" The almost lifeless voice came out of his throat. He had it dry, from the same stress.

"We will focus on Bunbury," Ryo said with both hands shaped at chest height.

"I don't listen to Bunbury," She denied with a disheveled face.

"Héroes del Silencio," He said, quoting with his fingers. "They have songs as powerful as you"

"I also don't hear Héroes."

"Well, you'll hear them," He interrupted without taking a no for an answer. "And you will have to learn the songs by heart"

"But!"

"Zero buts, Kotoko." He interrupted her again. "You will listen to them and do what I tell you, so that we don't leave loose ends in the contest. You have to win"

"What is the desire to win?"

"You earn a trip to the hot springs!" He replied immediately.

"What?" The orbs of her eyes widened. "Hot springs?"

"What you heard," He said, giving himself importance. "You will earn a trip for the whole family"

The drop had spilled from the glass… of course she would like to give him and his family a trip as a thank you for letting her live in his house. Easy to guess what must have gone through Kotoko's mind that was lighting up as Ryo told her the first place prize.

He was a mouthful that guy.

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**P.S. **A somewhat short chapter, I hope you like it.


	14. Fifth musical encounter

_"__I believe in love because I am never satisfied"_

The days passed and the tension of that day accumulated in a nest of conflicts settled in his chest, how desperate he felt to consume it daily! How emotional weariness surrounded him! However, he would not give up on the new challenge that was presented in time and form. No, rather, he would face the penalties of having to support his special person no matter how complicated the tour is; if he supported her with his forehead raised, she would notice him as a possible love candidate.

He had to conquer her in one way or another, in the way that was possible and incidentally, credible. Because he wouldn't make a fool of himself as a certain person —Kin-chan— to conquer her by obligation.

No sir, he would conquer her so that she would feel supported and loved by him, he would make her feel safe in his arms, he would give her everything in order to see her smile, he would always take care of her and grant her all her whims to the smallest, he would also make her see that the smallest details of her person he saw them clearly and didn't forget such important things as those.

He was certainly the ideal candidate for her.

She still didn't return home, but he could see her on the University campus in the company of her friends and Ryo. An irritation arose in his chest, preventing him from concentrating on his routine life, which he so easily designed to continue his life in the best way possible, anyway, she would not return home even if it hurt.

It irritated him to see her in the company of Ryo for being the origin of that ominous idea.

She looked so calm, he did not want to ruin her mood, the same that fascinated him so much to watch from a distance without anyone noticing.

He gave an overwhelming sigh and headed for his next class in the engineering building where Matsumoto was waiting for him. He was already very aware of Matsumoto's feelings that she loved him in the romantic sense and longed for him as a boyfriend, but certainly, he would never fall in love with someone other than Kotoko.

Leaving his last class of the day, he went to the cafeteria feeling that hunger was coming to him. Matsumoto approached him, taking him by the right arm where his hand hung from his side.

"I like being like this with you," She said in a flirtatious way.

"Hm," He blew snubbed, causing her to raise her head questioningly.

"What's that about?"

"Why don't you respect my privacy?"

"You don't have to treat me like that." She said indignantly with his reaction.

"Me?" He pretended surprise. "Rather, you." He pointed at her with a withering look. "You should respect my privacy as soon as I need it, like right now," He said, after getting rid of her contact and going to another address if he was chased to the cafeteria by that persistent woman.

"You've been in a bad mood recently." She shrugged in a sad gesture.

Well yes, he was in a very bad mood to deal with more problems on his back.

He passed through the pastures of the university façade, tracing a different path between his feet than he used to take, in any case, guarding his numb hands between his pants pockets by the simple fact of being frustrated of the events that were approaching in the future .

Clearly, fate would not have mercy on him even if things didn't go as he wished.

Rather, fate hates him.

He jumped into the air, bombarded with harmful thoughts.

Suddenly, he stopped. He saw her lying in a corner of the pasture, in spring blossom, as if recharging positive energies to activate; In a way, a preparation.

She was calm, wearing headphones and breathing accompanied. Nothing could interrupt her small world of reflection and music, the one he so envied could reach someday.

He turned to her, but not before if he didn't turn sideways in case someone followed him. When he realized that nobody was following him, he deduced that it was time to approach her.

Pre-caused as he could, he sat next to her, with his legs crossed, he let his back stand up to recharge his elbows.

The soft sight filled him a little, noting that on top of him stood a huge tree with a great crown and the bird's squeak was accompanied by the breeze of the wind.

She always knew how to find the best places to relax.

And he knew how to find her when he longed to see her.

He felt that the minutes passed by, circulating and advancing, however he was careful not to interfere in the pacifism of Kotoko, who looked just like sleeping beauty. Yes, it was one of the few times he watched her sleep (if he did), in the late afternoon.

He noticed that she opened her eyes, realizing that she was not the only person who was asleep in the grassland.

"Naoki-kun." She mentioned his name calmly, making him tremble inside as he processed the sound of her voice invading his eardrums. "What brings you here?" She asked, stretching her arms up.

"Not much," he snorted out the voice that was shaking from talking to her.

"Are you visiting me?" Her face lit up when she asked the question, scrutinizing as she saw him.

"What's that about?" He dodged the question, hiding his gaze in the tree canopy that provided shade, giving the impression of being in the clouds.

She looked at him astonishing, shifting her relaxed features to some cautious ones; He frowned, surprised at her behavior.

"You didn't answer my question." She said wrinkling her eyebrows, trying to get up next to him.

"There is no need to answer you." He slid his fingertips along the narrow line that the grassland movement was on par with the wind, which crashed against the tips of his fingers. There was some comfort in that strange action, where he tried with all his being to make a young man uninterested in life notice, but he longed to be loved. Dearly for her. "Besides, why do you lie in a place like this?" He added monotonously, without changing any of his facial gestures.

"I wanted to rest," She responded quickly, bending her knees to her chest. "To distract me a little, since I have to participate in that contest." She complained, shrugging. "It's so annoying to participate." She hid his face in the opening provided by her knees.

He noticed her upset by the fact that she had to participate in the contest that his mother forcibly nominated to enter. His mother was not ashamed to have meddled in matters that didn't concern her.

No one, not even his mother, should distress her. They deserved the worst! He gritted his teeth as he reflected on the tremendous burden that was placed on Kotoko's shoulders.

"You don't have to participate, if you don't want to." He made sure he tried to sound accurate. Something in his voice came out differently, because it didn't sound without emotions, but with concern. "It's not your obligation, Kotoko"

"Do you think that?" She lifted her head from her knees, letting them stretch across the cool ground and her arms extended to the point of almost touching him, but she didn't because she wanted to move them to a different posture.

She leaned on her elbows, just like him.

"I only say what I think." He saw her sideways, appreciating her slender figure that caused him so much warm sensations that grew inside him as he noticed her appear in front of his sight.

"Thank you, Naoki-kun." She smiled gleaming, detailing from her own skin that she exerted radiant energy on him, which served as the engine for his feelings to continue to grow.

"Whatever" He snapped, clenching his lips.

"I'll show you something," She said suddenly, approaching him, removing a headphone from her ear to give it to him.

"Something like what?" He demanded to know, raising his chin in a defensive position, since his heart skipped a beat.

"Just put it on." She handed her the headphone, where he corresponded to the gesture. "We will travel across the universe," She applauded excitedly, shaking her legs and head without her beautiful smile disappearing from her face.

"Okay." He agreed to his suggestions, similar to granting all his whims.

The song of "Pulsar" appeared just when he wished to plunge into a whirlpool of said sensations of which would be equivalent to the events that were happening in his mind. Being an individual with few friends, (in fact he only had one, of which he did not speak or frequent, for reasons that were not worth highlighting); he was not of many words, but of gestures that allowed him to approach the people with whom he felt comfortable. It is worth mentioning that there was only one person who made him behave that way, in order to obtain her affections to also grow along with him, of course.

He didn't believe in love, nor in the subjective statements that respected the term, since he considered them as gross. He didn't believe in the nonsense of love from which his mother so much fed his family with confusing lessons for him to decipher.

He didn't believe in love, rather he believed in Kotoko.

And everything he could forgive her, as long as she was willing to belong to him.

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**P.S. **(Mention of the song "Pulsar" from Gustavo Cerati)


	15. Painful tennis tournament

_"__And I need you now tonight_

_And I need you more than ever_

_And if you only hold me tight_

_We'll be holding on forever_

_And we'll only be making it right_

_'Cause we'll never be wrong"_

The cold coming from the window of his room was annoying to comfort himself under the premises of a boring night, incidentally the dream did not come as he had intended to conceive.

The click of the door opened revealing a feminine figure, somewhat familiar to him, he would say a comforting figure. Her hair transmuted on his part, in her eyes he could see the brightness he so longed to experience, her hands slid down the folds of his bed allowing the first step to approach him, and thus activate in him the warm sensations that took off from his vulnerable body.

The thirst to touch her sprouted from his pores, causing his mind to become blurred, almost blank, as if it were another mirage.

His body reacted by inertia, letting her get into his bed, under his control, under his domain.

He let the tips of his fingers gradually brush the burning, soft skin she possessed, sticking his lips over her shoulders that looked like shapes waiting to be touched by him.

It felt so good.

He placed kisses on the tip of her shoulders, slowly rising to her neck that simulated a lax sense for him to quench his burning thirst, since at that moment he sought to feel good, through pleasure.

The pleasure of touching her, burning in his hands where his mouth kissed the corner of her lips to the lobe of her ear, he bit her gently and then continued exploring the cheekbones of her cheeks, at which she was so eagerly guarded.

He felt her soft to his touch, perfect for him.

He dipped his head over the opening of her neck, narrowing his broad arms toward her body, bringing her thin, strong body close to his chest.

He couldn't describe the things he felt emerging from the pit of his stomach, or how his chest was about to explode just by touching her superficially, without exerting pressure, with some degree of tension.

In spite of being even slight friction, he already saw himself reborn in a matter of everything.

She parted her lips, succumbing to the temptation to kiss him, to touch him just as he wanted the same. He wanted to touch her, smell her, brush her, kiss her, etc. These crazy desires aroused slow actions that in turn imprisoned the small body of the girl who had him upside down.

Just by touching her activated in his heart a dump of sensations that increased his desires, managing to superimpose his body on top of hers imposing his presence.

He opened his mouth moistened, managing to reach her lips capturing her in a soft kiss that traced the meaning of their relationship. He wrapped her in his arms, tightening his grip, moving their mouths in a game of kisses that increased in texture, passion.

He was willing to move forward when…

The buzz of the alarm took him out of his fanciful state of a shaking, not worse! A mockery of fate that again made him such rude moves to make him see that he was not incompetent to conquer the person he wanted.

He didn't adapt to having those dreams that prompted him to bring them to reality. Find somewhere the certainty of satisfying his substantial desires to feel loved.

He wanted to destroy his annoying alarm at once, how much annoyance it caused him! Dammit! He turned it off, feeling helpless in his sleep.

Yuuki said good morning somewhat confused with his behavior, he observed him a few seconds before leaving the room, with the uniform on. He assumed that he went to breakfast, and he would also go to breakfast after recovering from the sensations his beating body poured over his head. Intense and inexplicable sensations that floated in the sober atmosphere of his darkened room where the morning light entered through the curtains of his window, the light clarified him and that sensation overcame him to a rage accumulated in impotence because his dream was not real.

His cheeks burned, his chest gushing in electrifying pangs, just like his heart beating strongly corresponding to his situation, his hands throbbed to touch her…he growled annoyed at everything.

Anyway, he had to go down to breakfast instead of wailing.

He needed to discharge his rage at some point in that day.

* * *

The entrance to the school didn't seem interesting, but something on that day intrigued him and he was not there to deal with it. He was already very unhappy to put more wood in the fire.

When he entered the hall, he realized that photos of the contestants who would participate in the contest were published, including Kotoko. His body braked dry.

A photograph of Kotoko almost left him without air of the same impression he had when he saw her face and her smile combined with a natural position, being sprayed with water.

She looked happy, without noticing that someone was looking at her from a distance, her arms extended at the same time raised her hair as if she were boasting it, she wore a red open hood jacket and zipper similar to a windbreaker, simple white T-shirt, and reached appreciate that he wore blue half-leg shorts. Water sprinkled her hair gently, lightly brushing the surface of her rosy cheekbones, increasing her natural beauty, which she didn't doubt even if she didn't admit it publicly.

A muscle spasm arose from his back, a sign of his anger. Why did these kinds of situations of such bad taste have to happen to him? He put a hand on his temple and massaged to calm the terrible headache.

He went to the tennis court during the morning, taking advantage that the cool weather persisted in the environment and spring was soon approaching with a stir.

He ran into Matsumoto who greeted him somewhat resentfully at his last meeting on the university campus where his bad mood had taken him far away. Sudou greeted him mischievously, detail that puzzled him. _What would that have been? _He wondered, warming his muscles before beginning the practice.

It didn't take him long to discover the reason why Sudou was in an excellent mood, that is, for him it was like a bucket of icy water falling directly to his head that burned in rage.

Kotoko was on the tennis court in the company of Sudou chatting from the nets, as soon as he saw her laugh at something he said, he couldn't help grinding his teeth in the same anger.

_It's not like he is so funny_, he snorted in his mind, suddenly remembering the dream he had that morning almost like a mirage of his being reflected before him. A revelation produced by his subconscious that shouted at his brain to act or else, he would lose her.

He took action on the matter and addressed her, abandoning what he was doing.

"Naoki-kun, hello," Kotoko noticed him immediately, he nodded cordially. Sudou turned to see him with some mocking gesture.

"Ah! Irie" He pronounced with a hint having close contact with him. That was enough to squeeze the jaw and twitch. "I see you have noticed that we have a very special visit" He surrounded Kotoko by placing an arm on top of her, giving him reasons to not lose his sanity. "She will only come to participate in activities related to people to promote herself in the contest" He said with a boom of greatness.

"But, Sudou-senpai," Kotoko said, taking off Sudou's arm, to which Naoki was relieved to see that. "I don't know how to play tennis."

"I'll take care of that." He smiled a good-naturedly, clasping his hands around his waist, extending his chest, an act that seemed ridiculous even for a man his age. He snorted the air that escaped his lungs, also giving the appearance of being someone better to teach him to play tennis.

Who knows how Sudou took it, but he took it as the opportunity to go one step further, even if it was little, it didn't matter if that made Kotoko's heart lean more to his side. In order to secure his position in her heart, the rest didn't matter.

Kotoko moved her eyes from side to side, a sign that he interpreted as helpful: she was doubting Sudou.

"Baka" He spoke loudly and clearly, catching her attention. "You come with me," he dictated.

The warm-up began for all the members of the club, but nevertheless, the visitor of that day consisted of nothing more and nothing less than Aihara Kotoko.

Obviously, he couldn't stand the idea of seeing her as the center of attention, likewise seeing her as an object of applause and shouting. How awful! Of course, but she was determined to win the contest at the expense of everything, for what she respected, he needed to give in to the ramblings that arose produced by the same anger of knowing as the friend who only accompanied her in the Odyssey, when he wanted to be more than friends. Much more.

The girls ran and quickly got tired halfway, the men resisted an extra stretch in the warm-up, but she, well, beat them freehand.

The skill of that scandalous girl would enchant anyone, even to leave them stunned by the resistance and desire that she put on the run.

He watched her run with her short legs around the court, breathing deeply in a serious, totally determined gesture. Her desire to face the challenge was noticeable.

The girls grumbled when they saw her snatch them for the second time in a lap, then a third and finally a fourth.

Finishing the warm-up it was time to assign their partners for the training of the day, it was said that Matsumoto was the partner of his choice although Sudou didn't agree with it, however he would assign Kotoko with the intention of living with Matsumoto. It could not be clearer, that Sudou liked Matsumoto, but that didn't mean that he would let go of what happened with his arm around Kotoko's shoulders. How much annoyance it caused him!

Sudou chose Kotoko as his partner, which pleased him.

"I don't know how to play tennis." She whispered to him doubtfully. "Would you help me?" She smiled shyly. His heart pounded happily to feel taken into account.

He nodded.

"Aihara!" Sudou shouted from the other court, causing her to tense with the call. "Stop talking!" He ordered changing his good-looking countenance to a voracious one.

"Yes!" She assured, forming a fist of her hand as a sign of confidence.

Naoki tried to teach her the basics of playing tennis, the racket movement, the position of the feet, the serve and the vital: not closing her eyes when the ball came on the way.

After an hour, there was no progress of notable improvement more than to see how she tried futilely to handle the racket because she threw it by mere instinct on the other side of the court with the intention of defending herself. This caused him to be annoyed with her for that, although he always forgave her everything, but knowing that they both could not have something in common was the origin of his anger.

In themselves, they had nothing in common, not even the sport they practiced.

Suddenly, Sudou suggested that they play twice as many couples, but Kotoko refused for not knowing how to handle the basics of tennis perfectly.

"Don't be scared, Aihara," Sudou mocked.

Naoki tensed his jaw, no one made fun of her when he was present. And call her scared? Unforgivable! He wouldn't let it happen.

"Come on, Kotoko," he said, ducking his head to her ear. "We won't like it." She looked up, transforming her serious countenance into a determined one. The brightness of her eyes stood out, symbolizing the emotion of the unknown, from which he led him to smile sideways.

"To participate!" She declared in the air, raising the racket around her center.

"It's not a contest," He corrected her dismissively.

As soon as they started playing, Kotoko missed all the shots that were approaching her. She looked funny trying countless times to hit even the tennis ball with the racket once, but it was useless, she didn't have the ability to handle the ball in an indirect way, but directly.

It was ironic that she was a professional playing basketball but in tennis she was a failure.

"Kotoko!" He yelled at her so she could hit the ball with the racket, but he didn't see how it happened, but she hit him in the face with the racket that was heard like a roar.

Adding that at first she didn't realize that she had hit him in the face, as soon as she noticed that the ball bounced on the ground having crossed the other side of the court, she turned to see what hit the racket. When she realized that it was he who received the tremendous blow, she gasped in fright expressing the terrible shame she felt when she saw the gesture of annoyance he showed.

His entire face burned as a result of the impact he received, and as for details of the pain he could say that she possessed immense strength because the pain was acute, causing stitches on the surface of his skin.

"Forgive me, Naoki-kun." She apologized alarmed, looking everywhere in search of a speedy solution.

"It's okay" He said limited emotions, keeping calm.

"No, it's not right." She insisted stubbornly, pushed him with an open hand, letting the racket fall off the floor. "It doesn't seem like you're okay, you look annoyed."

"Aihara" Sudou approached them as if nothing had happened. "Leave him, he can take care of himself." He put a hand on her head in a sign of complicity, something he didn't like at all. Something happened with those two that he didn't like, but he wasn't in the mood to deal with those issues. He would do it later.

"But" She protested against Sudou, taking her hand off, stepping back. "Naoki-kun needs to go to the infirmary," She announced.

"Kotoko," Naoki pronounced monotonous. "It's not for much."

"Don't say that" She said, unwilling to leave him alone, a detail that moved him. "I'll help you"

"Aihara, how stubborn" Matsumoto appeared on the scene. That situation couldn't be worse, for the poor genius who suffered from a pain in the face and was in the company of the girl he wanted without her knowing it. "Don't you see that you annoy him?" She opined, directing her eyes to his presence, as it always happened when he wanted to remain by her side, to which he refused.

"If I annoyed him, he would tell me directly, don't you think?" She asked, raising her chin in a haughty manner with both hands on her hips. How imposing she looked before his eyes! He loved seeing her defending him in her own way, just as he liked it. Matsumoto's silence was the answer enough to understand the situation as it was.

He was taken to the infirmary with the intention of curing the blow that was visible on his face, the racket lines reflected on his face detailed the force in which she exerted the blow.

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**P.S.** (Mention to the song "Total eclipse of the heart" by Bonnie Tyler)

**NOTE:** This is a little intense chapter, it is different from my style, but I hope you liked it.


	16. The event

_"__I waste my time thinking about the essential that I sometimes let it pass"_

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As soon as he was cured of the mark she had left on his face, he resumed his activities of daily life as if nothing had disturbed his peace.

As calm and monotonous as it used to be before meeting Kotoko.

She still didn't return home, but had the possibility of seeing her in some corner of the University, walking or listening to music with her typical expression drawn from the world; Those were the right times to approach her and talk a few minutes before seeing her leave the facility on her bicycle.

He wasted time in the essential, in the tangible that he could brush with the tips of his fingers on the surface of his skin, he could touch her so vividly that his static body woke up like another human. However, he didn't dare to do so. He let it pass, as everything in life he ended up letting it pass him by.

Even though he recognized that he should be encouraged and conquer Kotoko, he feared for one reason or another the rejection of her part, since he knew well that she rejected all those who confessed to her. She ended up asking them to be friends.

If she told him that, he didn't know what he would do then. Surrender or insist. Either one was worth it, but he could only fit in one and choose to keep his word.

He reiterated that giving up wasn't an option; It never would be.

Leaving his classes that corresponded to him that day, he decided to leave the university campus once again, in case of bumping into Kotoko lying under the shade of the tree, with the headphones on her ears and the body resting in a straight line.

Unfortunately, he didn't find her, but he found himself with a somewhat strange sight because he didn't imagine it as something he would experience in flesh and blood, but he didn't agree with seeing those scenarios.

Kotoko practiced in the stands her singing holding in her right hand a full bottle of water, being directed by what seemed to be the singing instructor, because he was directing her in terms of movements, tone, interpretation of words according to the facial gestures, and the bearing before the public, which according to the instructor "should be imposing".

He rolled his eyes in full disdain, objecting to trying to change her adorable personality to be a fierce and arrogant person, when she was originally not. They shouldn't change her, if he wanted her that way.

But instead of interrupting the session, he didn't do it, as soon as he saw in her gaze the determination they reflected in the brightness of her eyes that stood out more than the rest of her movements in front of the stage.

Ryo accompanied her as well as Jinko and Satomi (her friends), encouraging her to keep up with the unstoppable rhythm she imposed on her and remembered that Ryo suggested protest songs, perhaps for that reason she behaved in a hostile attitude towards the public although she didn't be that way; His heart squeezed as he realized that he didn't contribute anything to make her feel better, rather than pure concern.

For example: having hit his face with a tennis racket.

He shoved both hands into his pockets, shrugged and left.

* * *

The Japanese fast food festival had come to the university campus, imposing itself in front of him like a sign of bright and colorful lights to get into forces.

Unfortunately, it was forced to have him as a waiter in the establishment of Okonomiyaki next to Kin-chan who, likewise, had the same stand as him. He rolled his eyes, trying not to hear his annoying voice at any moment when he was serving tables.

Matsumoto and Sudou were also part of the establishment assigned to them, as a requirement they needed to agree on the positions that each would occupy at the time of attending the position and not leaving it abandoned.

He was considered in the chef position, at first, but he refused as he intended to run into Kotoko at some point in the day she would come and he want to approach her position and he would attend her.

Illusive hopes he kept within himself, too illusory for someone as liberal as her.

It was only enough to wish for it for him to feel better.

He served and cleaned the tables, accommodated the chairs, attended to the clients (being more women), brought and picked up the orders, etc. A somewhat annoying work for a guy like him, being so straight and proud to serve clients in an establishment that was originally not his, but a part of his university's festival.

Matsumoto gave him flirtatious glances every time their eyes met or sometimes their shoulders reached to touch in one of the exchanges that entailed being a waiter.

"I'll have better luck than yours, Irie!" Kin-chan snorted from his point of being. He rolled his eyes. "You'll see! Kotoko will help me in my stand, and not yours!" He warned arrogantly, pointing him with his index finger with disdain.

What he lacked… threaten him with the girl he wanted. That was to fall low, even for him.

"That Kansai" Matsumoto murmured with bulging eyes. "He has a lot of confidence in himself, but" She added. "He hasn't left you alone since day one." She emphasized a detail that he wasn't in the mood to remember, much less think of it in living flesh.

He sighed in frustration, rolling his eyes, making Matsumoto understand his intention. She understood and withdrew to attend her corresponding table.

After five, he was grouting the dishes of previous clients.

Suddenly he heard a voice that bristled the pores of his skin until his bones eroded: Kotoko. She had reached his stand!

"Ah! I'm hungry" She announced as if she were arriving at her own home. She was holding her basketball backpack, wearing her typical training attire and her hair tied in a disheveled ponytail from the hemispheres of her head, the drops of sweat emanating from her forehead made her understand that she had just finished training in the auditory.

Kin-chan didn't miss the opportunity, seeing that she was walking through the stands with the interest of trying eat soon.

"What will be good?" She placed a finger on her chin, highlighting her tight lips symbolizing what she was thinking.

He also didn't missed the opportunity to approach her.

"Kotoko!" Kin-chan spoke first. "Come to my stand." He waved his free arm (because on the other he grabbed the spatula). "We have Okonomiyaki! The best here "

Unfortunately, he caught her attention, thanks to his not-so-subtle voice. She approached him with interest, sniffing and watching the stand.

"It smells good, Kin-chan" She commented smiling. The Kansai smiled triumphantly, giving him a winning sidelong glance. "Have you been here all day?"

"Sure!" He boasted good-naturedly, putting on his characteristic frown that meant he was in the skies of happiness. How he hated that gesture! "I was waiting for you since early morning"

"I had training" She said, having ordered a portion of Okonomiyaki from him. "And preparations for the contest, you know, it has gotten very heavy." She complained pouting sideways, anchoring her hands on the fence of the post.

Kin-chan winked, nodding.

"You know you have my vote" He said confidently. "It is obvious that you will win, if you are the prettiest woman in all of Tonan!" He enchanted with a gesture of adoration to heaven, extending his arms as if he wanted to embrace the unattainable.

_What annoyance_, Naoki told himself, tightening his jaw. _How it was that she did not realize that I am next, it's not so difficult to turn to the right._

"Yes, thank you" She thanked, shrugged uncomfortably. "But, the other girls are also very talented." She thought about the contest, impressed. "There is a girl who went to the circus." She listed with her fingers as each of the participants in the contest told her.

Naoki listened carefully to her words, recording the tone of her voice, the descriptions, her gestures, her eyes, her hands, everything about her was kept in his memory as a treasure found in the desert.

"It's almost ready" Kin-chan said, checking Kotoko's request every so often, she looked forward to the opportunity to eat everything in his path.

"It smells delicious, Kin-chan" She exclaimed cheerfully, applauding him. "You have a lot of future as a cook" She flattered, causing an aggressive blush on the edge of his cheeks. Fortunately, she didn't notice his reaction because she was waiting for the food.

_Kotoko is too kind, even for him_, he complained unwilling to let go of the opportunity to approach him in an oversight by Kin-chan. _And for me too,_ he added.

"I appreciate the comment," he said placing the order on the plate, finishing with the last details of spicing up the rest. "It's the only thing I'm really good at."

"It's the same for me with cinematography" She said, shrugging her shoulders in a quick motion. "Although I don't know if I'm really talented in basketball, because Ryo is a much better player than me, and my friend Nozomi too."

"Don't say that." He was offended by the comment. "You have a lot of spark when you play, I mean it, it's not because I like you, but because it's the truth" He said, and for the first time, Naoki agreed with him.

Kotoko does know how to play basketball with a lot of spark and dedication, if it wasn't for her, they would have lost the game that summer when he saw her play and fall because of the rogue captain of the opposing team.

"Thank you"

Kin-chan handed her the freshly cooked Okonomiyaki, steaming and taking off a delicious smell, noting that that guy had a talent for cooking.

He had to admit defeat, but not the end of the war.

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**P.S. (**Mention of the song "Oración" from Héroes del Silencio)


	17. Kotoko's surprise

_"The pleasures of poverty have defeated my mocked revolution"_

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As soon as she saw the Okonomiyaki, she noticed his presence next to Kin-chan's stand.

"Ah, hello Naoki-kun!" She greeted him, waving her free arm. He tensed full body product of his nerves that threatened to be visible in front of her. "Is it your stand?" She pointed specifically to his stand, to which he nodded.

"From who else?" He gave her a sarcastic look.

"I'm coming in" She sat down at one of the empty tables in his stand, placing her food on the table and took out the chopsticks.

"Don't join the enemy, Kotoko!" Kin-chan exclaimed trying to hold her back.

"But I want to help my friends" She grumbled stubbornly, swallowing a piece of Okonomiyaki in her mouth with placidity. "There's nothing wrong with that"

Naoki approached to give her the menu of his stand that consisted of: 1 order of Okonomiyaki accompanied by a drink of your choice, or the Okonomiyaki combo, a dessert of those that were available and a free drink.

From desserts they had: Anmitsu, custard pudding, melon bread or melonpan, and Wagashi.

"Hm, they have desserts" She commented, watching the menu closely, in what he was waiting for with his order-taking notebook, feeling his heart beating like crazy.

"Yes" He said seriously. "You can ask for the combo, but as you asked for from another position, I don't think you consume anything else here." He pretended to bother what he laughed dry.

"I want custard pudding" She ordered, throwing the menu in his face, and then continue eating the Okonomiyaki Kin-chan made for her. "Please" She remarked, sticking out her tongue. Without realizing much, he knew that between them the barrier that prevented him from being together gradually decreased, and that gave him hopes of being together. He smiled sideways and left for the request.

Once he brought her dessert, she invited him to sit at the table to chat and catch up. Although at first he refused for his pride, seeing that she insisted on wanting to talk, he couldn't object to what he didn't flinch to sit down.

"What do you want to talk about so insistently?" He suppressed a smile that escaped his mouth.

"I want to keep up to date with what has happened to everyone in the family" She said, eating a spoonful of the pudding. "Like Oba-sama, Oji-san, Chibi and Yuuki-kun" And he what? He didn't count as a family member? He frowned. "Of course you too," She added mischievously.

"Were you going to get me out of the house?" He inquired jokingly, while crossing his arms in a haughty pose. "Or take my place?"

"None of that." He laughed at his question, so he couldn't help feeling full of himself. "Tell me, I'm all ears." She signaled to be prepared to listen, putting the part of her thumb behind her ear.

"Chibi has grown"

"And what else?"

"Mother misses you." He remained dry. "Yuuki is the same, dad working as usual"

"What about you?" She asked with a question mark. "What about 'you know'?" She emphasized lowering her voice, shaking her eyebrows sharply.

"What?"

"The medicine thing," She replied incredulously. "What about that?"

She was interested in his life, she hadn't forgotten that conversation they had in her apartment, where he confined her his deep thoughts that he kept for privacy or in any case, not to consider them relevant to walk by telling anyone who knew him.

"When will you take the transfer test?" She insisted.

"Don't push me." He grimaced.

"It's not pressure from me." She pretended to be impressed; he smiled wanting to laugh out loud at the expression she made. "It's your dream, Naoki-kun, not mine." She put her hands to her chest. "If it were mine, from the beginning I would have chosen to go to medicine even though my father thought I was insane." She raised her hands to her head, opening her eyes in surprise. "Don't think it more when you know that's what you want, and I'm interested in your being well."

"Why?" He interrupted, taken in curiosity to hear her say the comment with such force. Did her feelings about him begin to change? He wanted to smile with the same emotion he felt.

She stumbled as if she had not expected her early interruption, but recovered quickly.

"Because I appreciate you, and I don't know, I think that more than friendship I have begun to see you in another way" She raised her eyebrows as if trying to find out if what she was saying had a certain coherence, and for him, it was to have tried part of happiness in a brief moment. "I have grown fond of you with affection and respect, not like the one the rest of the school was afraid of you, but respect for your person, which is what counts." She nodded, agreeing with what she said. "And it's because I feel we get along very well! Yes!" She smiled pleased. "That's why I'm interested in seeing you well, knowing that you can grow as a person not because I or your parents tell you, but because you want that change in your life." She affirmed sure of herself "That change that defines your life"

He remained petrified before her foundations, but above all, rejoicing to learn that she appreciated him and her way of seeing him was changing just as he changed. Both were changing so that their ties were joining with the passage of time, until their feelings were reciprocated.

He knew that he must be patient, and that patience as such was a virtue.

So he would remain on the sidelines, close to her, so that her feelings changed and were inclined towards him and not another.

"I'll take the exam in winter to get in spring," he said clearly. "When I do the exam, I will tell my parents that I want to be a doctor, from there on out, I won't let it go any longer," he said.

"I think it's perfect!" She approved. She had just finished the cream pudding without leaving traces that before there was food on the plate, so she would not struggle to wash the dishes that were provided for the event.

He got up to grout the empty plate and then continue talking.

When he returned he saw that Ryo, her best friend, had arrived at the table. He rolled his eyes, thinking he came to ruin the moment they were going through. He grunted.

"Are you ready?" He said in a tone pressing him. She nodded, rubbing the fingers of her hands on top of the other, looking sideways and pouting doubtfully. "Don't be afraid, things will be perfect, you'll see," he said condescendingly.

"Are you sure?"

"Like, I'm your best friend." Naoki rolled his eyes, paying attention to what was happening. "Now let's go, it's time for the show!" He snorted, taking her hand. They disappeared from his sight.

Naoki without noticing what he was doing, threw a couple of chairs that were part of his stand, also folded the broom stick with which he swept the floor.

What will they be up to?

His response was not long in coming when Matsumoto came to tell him the news.

"Aihara will sing at the entrance of the campus" She announced awkwardly, shaking her head in disbelief and the ravages of annoyance that escaped her voice.

"What?" He questioned, without hiding the wonder of his voice.

"What you heard" She said annoyed. "Aihara will sing in front of everyone to promote herself in the contest"

"When will that be?" He was interested in going to her side than paying attention to Matsumoto's complaints.

"In less than five minutes"

He ran to the entrance to the campus where Kotoko was supposed to sing, although he hesitated at first, it didn't seem to be a lie since he had heard them talk about it for a while. However, he had no doubt that she regretted presenting herself to the students if she were known not for her voice, but for her talent in basketball and that which belonged to the men's team.

Upon arriving at the site, he saw that the news was indeed true.

They had installed a small stage with a microphone, drum set, Marshall speakers, a Fender Stratocaster electric guitar and a Rickenbacker bass recharged over the speaker.

The smoke came from the lower corners of the stage produced by Jinko and Satomi; Ryo, on the other hand, welcomed with the microphone in hand with wide confidence and clarity of words.

"I introduced you to Aihara Kotoko!" He shouted, extending his right hand towards the direction of some stairs leading to the entire stage.

In that, she came out behind the barrier that protected the stage from the back in a black cloth.

Naoki almost dropped the jaw of the impression.

She wore her hair loose in light curls in the middle of her hair to give volume to the fall, black eyeliner placed under the eyes highlighting a dark and mysterious effect, black flared pants, short-sleeved linen black shirt with flowered details in the lower area of both sides that were deployed as roots of a flower connected to the beginning of the shirt, black Spanish heeled boots.

Anyway, she wore black from head to toe.

While she used them with great style, confidence and high bearing in his hands that were allowed to move in rhythm to the song that began to play being played by the group that accompanied it, and it was curious to mention that those boys were in the presentation if they weren't her friends, at least he thought so.

The song "Los placeres de la pobreza" de Héroes del Silencio rumbled and vibrated with intensity, adding the song that came out of her voice with infusion.

The public seemed to be perplexed at the beginning when the song began, but with the passage of the lyrics, the dry ice, the artistic movements that she exerted, motivated the public to be enchanted with the presentation and presence that the group presented.

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**P.S.** (Mention of the song "Los placeres de la pobreza" by Héroes del Silencio)


	18. The songs that shows our truth

_"When the stars shot down sooner or later, you will also come"_

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The first song ended and with it the wave of applause seized the group of people. Kotoko stood in the center and raised her arms open to the public receiving applause with appreciation, grinning broadly from ear to ear.

She came down with the hand that held the microphone, saying:

"Thank you!" She exclaimed giggling. "Next one goes for you"

The song of "La sirena Varada" by Héroes del Silencio.

When she was on the bridge of the song, she leaned down on her knees at the edge of the stage, smiling as she sang with that sparkle in her eyes that was so unique from where he watched her with such longing guarded in his mind.

The spectators put their hands in apparent admiration, trying to reach it from where they were; She, of course, accepted the gesture, shaking hands automatically.

For a moment he felt envious, that uncomfortable feeling he first experienced when Kotoko won the basketball game that summer day, where Ryo touched her face and that palpable feeling gave him a bad experience. A bad run. He hated when men touched her. Sure, men other than him.

She winked at them before she stood up and continued walking aggressively against the floor with her feet rumbling on the stage, shaking her hair.

She set her presence on stage, completely dominated by the cries of the audience and the pressure she had to exert to keep up with the speed of the guitars and the textures of the sound that required a lot of control at the time of singing.

At the end of the song, she let the wave of applause sound again, waiting with a bright smile for the calm of the spectators. She waved a hand to the musicians who were waiting for her with the instruments at the point of being played. She seemed to indicate something, first an expression of pause.

"We'll take it easy" She assured from the microphone, trying to calm the students. "We will play a song in English a little different from the previous ones" They pouted pessimistic about the matter, to which she responded. "If you don't like it, you can retire, if not you can stay" The second signal she made to the musicians, prior to the beginning of the song of "Cold as ice" by Foreigner, the keyboard welcomed a classic that sometimes she put on the stereo when she said that she had done badly with one of her classmates at school and had been grimacing in disgust.

His heart rumbled loudly as soon as he saw her coming down the stage by the side of the stairs in his direction in a mischievous manner, and the audience began to shout louder; he, on the other hand, felt his cheeks redden to the point of burning in his face, being so he wanted to retreat from the place, but the fact of seeing her go to him for whatever reason, it caused him a curious sensation.

She practically told him that he was cold as ice.

She approached him, moving her eyebrows and hands in a dancing gesture, his heart was beating dangerous ravages because of her fault, since the sensations increased as his static face lost the sanity of which he was so used to.

The moment the instruments seized the sounds, in that brief moment, their eyes met with the entrance of her voice as she said several times 'cold as ice' as a bad omen.

He colored like a tomato, wishing with all his might not to be so notorious with his feelings that they were on the verge of exploding overboard in a wave of sensations cast with his feelings at lotus flower.

He wanted to believe that the perspective she had regarding him had changed, but it wasn't like that, no, she told him that he was cold as ice in front of all the spectators; The funny thing was not feeling humiliated, because inside he knew that she was telling the truth.

He was a person as cold as ice, because of the circumstances that would have triggered such behaviors in relation to his past, but that intervened with his main objective that was to conquer Kotoko as it would give rise.

If he didn't have her love, of nothing it wouldn't help him to have changed.

He saw how she returned to the stage and finished the presentation with another couple of songs, which after all were not as well known as the previous ones, but that still caused the students to notice her as a participant of the contest, that is, to take her seriously.

Obviously he didn't think so, but he had to admit that she looked attractive (more than usual), he even wanted to tell her she looked beautiful, but he wouldn't do it because it didn't match his personality.

That was a difficult inconvenience to overcome, because sooner or later, someone besides him will have her in the spotlight in case of being someone daring, spontaneous, who would like to have her. Another who noticed her and was a dangerous rival. Just thinking about it, his blood boiled as a breeding ground about to explode in the pot; he wouldn't allow another man to take her off when there was a possibility that this individual had other options besides Kotoko. Instead, he only had one option and was the only one he wanted for him.

He made it clear that he didn't like her because she was pretty, or because she was attractive, but because she made him feel special, something he never considered one of her outstanding qualities. She saw something in him that nobody was interested in seeing, and that made the difference between the other girls who only noticed him because of his appearance and his intelligence, not in the other attributes of his attractive physique.

Instead, her love made him a better person.

Although she was not in love with him, it showed that she appreciated him, he felt her love of friendship that was a very sincere one.

Of course he loved her, and he loved her very much.

That is why he will not stop to have her for him; At least that was what he expected to believe.

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**P.S.** (Mention to the song "La sirena Varada" by Héroes del Silencio)

**NOTE:** We see that Kotoko has taken herself very seriously with the contest and has thrown an indirect to Naoki.


	19. Sixth musical encounter

_"And when I look for you there is no place where you aren't "_

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The sprouts of the spring cherry blossomed like rough diamonds from the cherry trees; the sprouts looked like crystals that didn't shine their natural beauty, thus being absorbed in their temporary form.

Naoki with his doubts and so on, walked through the university campus, upset for a fairly specific reason. A reason that derived to a situation that has taken course as far as the perspective that the men began to have in relation to Kotoko.

If before they saw her as a rough girl, now they saw her as an object of admiration; such acts done by the students were unforgivable, and an inconstant burden on his back that not only bore with his inability to confess himself to her head-on, but with all the praise they said to her deliberately.

It was annoying to have to deal with their comments on a daily basis.

In the afternoon he remembered that Kotoko left training after half past six, without sorrow or glory, he toured the possible places she used to frequent on campus.

He passed by the cafeteria, the grassland courtyard where she lay down to listen to music, the parking lot of bicycles, etc. His last resort was the hall of the clubs where the choir group settled.

First he went up to the second floor of the club building, which was white with gray tones at the bottom of the hall; He looked in each and every one of the rooms as a sign of meeting with the one that said "Singing Club" or at least choir, besides he was completely unaware of the distribution of the clubs more than his own, of course.

When he found the choir group room, he found it empty.

Not a soul was present in the desert hall.

Frustrated, he had to leave the classroom with a great feeling of loneliness occupying part of his chest. He sighed dejectedly, dropping his shoulders and his prostrate gaze on the floor where he was supposedly going down the stairs to the usual road to his house.

In those, he saw her, right in front of him.

She passed with her head up, the step fast and firm, the backpack hung like a pendulum on her back. He saw her and his interior was completely paralyzed.

Without hesitation, he approached at a short pace, searching among his thoughts for some diffuse ray that electrified him in some way the potion of brevity, the possible and the best that could occur to him.

They met at some point where their eyes met.

"Ah, Naoki-kun, hello." She greeted him hurriedly, after going another way to the previous one. He frowned.

"Kotoko?" He raised his eyebrows, confused.

"See you later!" She waved her hand in goodbye, marching in a hurry away from him, something he didn't like at all. He decided to follow her, not even think about it, since he didn't like the way she addressed him.

He took her arm, surprising her instantly.

"Now I can't talk to you," She blew annoyed at his action. He, for his part, was offended by the deal, downplaying that it should not be so obvious with his feelings, while not liking to be treated that way, "I'm in a hurry," She warned urgently.

"Where are you going?" He demanded to know, putting pressure on his grip.

"That doesn't matter." She complained, letting go of his contact, that is, a rejection. _Intolerable,_ he would say.

"Don't ignore me," He snapped.

She looked at him static, eyes wide, blinking in disbelief; If he wanted to get her attention, he had already done it.

"Em ..." He wanted to correct his role, but preferred to shut up by giving her to understand that he expected a reaction from her, whatever it was, as long as there was one.

"I don't ignore you." She denied having recovered from his action.

"Then?" He put pressure on his tone, raising an eyebrow.

"I'll go to a session" She confessed uneasily. She signaled him to approach. "Of singing" She murmured hurriedly.

So much trouble for a singing session? She was taking it seriously about the beauty pageant.

"What?" He grimaced in disgust.

"If you'll excuse me" She mentioned, keeping her distance. "I'm leaving." She emphasized the last sentence by stepping directly to the backyard of the campus. He without wanting to give up, followed her more easily since his height gave him the benefit of moving faster than she did, so he didn't make an effort to reach her. "What are you doing, Naoki-kun?" She questioned alarmed, without stopping her steps.

"It's ridiculous that you take the contest seriously." He complained, shaking his head in denial, walking beside her without taking his eyes off her. "So I'll go see if you're really going to work or it's just a story" He said monotonously.

She blinked, opening her mouth in disbelief.

"Well" She agreed after a few seconds of listening. "Do what you want"

They went to the backyard of the campus.

Having reached the patio, he saw that there was a circle of people gathered in the grass with his legs crossed vocalizing with the direction of a person who became quite familiar. Kotoko ran to where the boys were gathered, waving their arms to get their attention.

"Guys! I have arrived" She announced her entrance smiling hurriedly, followed by Naoki, who only accompanied her for gossip not because she knew how to sing. "Sorry for the delay." She crouched down apologizing.

The boy with the acoustic guitar, the one that seemed familiar or rather, known, he said.

"I see you brought company."

Kotoko turned to him, once again aware of his monotonous and boring presence, so to speak, there was no other characteristic that distinguished him from the rest of the population more than his static face.

"Oh yes," she said nodding, sticking her tongue aside. "Naoki-kun." She smiled nodding in his direction. "He's accompanying me" She mentioned presumptuously.

What was that? He wrinkled his eyebrows, having taken a seat a meter away from the circle of boys, on a black-painted metal bench with small bows on the side of the loader.

Lately she had changed her attitude towards him and that caused him some conflict, he reiterated that he didn't bother her to presume or praise him or whatever it was, what caused him conflict was not that, but the reason behind such behavior.

He supposed that it was perhaps because of the beauty contest that had her stunned, adding that her 'friend' Ryo was behind her as a dog, ordering her what to do and how to do it in order to win the contest.

They made those things angry because Kotoko didn't deserve it in any way, if she was the best person in the world.

He sighed trying to calm himself before visibly twitching, making one of his temple veins highlight his own rage and helplessness to help her.

"Well," said the boy on the guitar, tearing the strings out of there he leaves. "Who starts singing?" He questioned the boys turning around the circle with a good-natured smile. Buyer smile, Naoki would say he only rolled his eyes in denial.

"Me!" Kotoko raised her hand wanting to participate. Naoki cocked a smile, glad to see her smile. "I want to!"

The others looked at her questioningly, as if they knew she would do that and that's why they gave her the opportunity to do so. Why didn't they accept her one hundred percent, if she was a girl with the best qualities and the best disposition towards things? Surely they envied her for being so gifted.

"Good Kotoko!" The boy smiled childishly, highlighting his perfect teeth, and that was where he fell realized. The boy was Nozomi Yuuki, another of Kotoko's friends since high school.

"Yes, well." She stood up, adjusting her hair that was already at chest level, highlighting her large hazel eyes.

"Wait!" Nozomi held her with his hands up, making Kotoko stunned.

"Em." She stammered.

"Sing a personal song" He demanded, twisting his eye. "One that relates an important fact in your life, those are the songs that best come to you; the emotional ones!" He exclaimed inspired, spreading his arms in the air but not before grabbing the guitar to prevent it from falling to the ground.

Kotoko was taken off guard, to which she was thoughtful with her finger under her chin frowning.

Naoki analyzed her, curious to know what was happening in Kotoko's enigmatic mind, the mind that so intrigued him.

What will she think? What things will come to mind when she reflects or when she is thinking of an answer to answer? Will they be good thoughts or bad thoughts? Or will only be the answers to cure his discomfort?

Suddenly, she approached Nozomi with a serious gesture, leaned into his ear and whispered something, moving her right hand to express an idea.

Naoki's curiosity was at the pick.

Kotoko positioned herself in the center of the circle with her arms at her sides, head up, modifying her carefree countenance to a serious and willing one.

"Well, I'm going to sing" She announced, looking sideways at Nozomi who was waiting for the signal to start playing the guitar. Both nodded in unison.

She began to sing the song of "Cactus" by Gustavo Cerati seriously, balancing her weight through the feet that were rocking at will; he, on the other hand, analyzed her quietly, but at the same time with content, wanting for a moment to take her in his arms and run away from there but couldn't do so until his position in her heart was assured.

_Ah! _He sighed in awe of so many thoughts in a single space of time that intermingled with what he contemplated quietly. At times he might seem an inconsistent man, although he reiterated that he didn't consider himself too proud for his own good (Although in fact he was an exaggeratedly proud and narcissistic man), likewise, dealing with his pride and narcissism were not the objectives he had proposed.

None of that nonsense that would waste his time on how valuable it was right in front of you. He had a woman he loved, who longed for fervently, with the woman he dreamed awake and imagined everywhere, even when he had to pay attention in class. He was grateful in advance for not being a disaster as far as studies were concerned, because it was obvious that his IQ of two hundred was beneficial in those cases.

Thanks to his intelligence he had the time to see Kotoko sing when an average student was breaking his head trying to do homework.

He smiled sideways, victorious, but unhappy at not being Kotoko's boyfriend yet.

He placed both arms at his sides, breathing slowly and slowly as he watched her sing and flow with the lyrics of the song, which she expressed with seriousness.

She suddenly smiled, changing her serious countenance to a liberating one. It was there, when the song ended and with it, something happened in both that in him it clicked.

Their eyes met in that brief moment.

Could it be that love began to sprout between them?

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**P.S.** (Mention to the song "Cactus" by Gustavo Cerati)


	20. Actions that confuse

He stumbled when a wave of applause broke into his calm.

He realized that he had lost himself among his own sensations when he heard her sing, to which he tried to regain normality in his way of sitting before being noticed by someone.

Kotoko bowed in thanks for the applause, smiling at everyone who applauded endlessly.

When she finished, she ran in his direction, something he didn't think possible.

"What did you think?" She immediately dropped a hand over his, causing him to open his eyes spreading the orbs of his brown eyes to the point of threatening to leave his position, his heart ripped from his chest in a violent jump, and a jolt of sensations invaded his body in a matter of thousandths of seconds. He looked at her sideways, paralyzed with emotion.

Kotoko did the same, she watched him until she caught what she had done with him.

She released her hand, dropping the jaw of shame, denying with both hands the air that was a mistake; error, he told himself, not taking the opportunity to take her hand.

"I'm sorry!" She exclaimed in alarm, shaking her head. A faint blush appeared on her rosy cheeks in a slightly pale pink color that he felt in her regret. She had had a different reaction to the previous ones ... "It was unconscious." She excused herself by saying that phrase over and over again until he was fed up with it.

"Enough!" He burst in, raising his authoritarian voice. "With one time is enough" He frowned trying to tie up ends with Kotoko's reaction that made him feel excited somehow. Yes there was hope for him.

"Eh, yes" She muttered, regaining her sanity.

A few seconds passed that for him, they were uncomfortable, but he didn't know if they were equally uncomfortable for her or just a time to analyze the situation she unconsciously caused, if the case was going there.

"Anyway" Kotoko spoke, moving a few inches away from him. You didn't need to be an idiot to understand that she was uncomfortable, or rather, disturbed by her action. "What did you think of the session?" She asked with a nervous laugh.

He raised his eyebrows, looking at her sideways, demonstrating his impetuous attitude that had inevitably remained fixed on the bench. He felt taken by surprise, but aware of what was going on around.

"Nothing bad." He repaired dry.

"That's good" She sighed.

Their eyes met again simply by inertia, doubting whether to speak or remain silent, even when he did not know what to do in a situation of that caliber. It was as if they put a problem in front of him and there was no way to treat him but to intrude into the bowels of his mind to such an extent that he would achieve some kind of introspection that would allow him to say something coherent.

But, she looked so cute, and he so clumsy for love. He wanted to slap in that sense in which she expected a reaction from him, which was not so much more than pure silence.

Kotoko's cell phone rang from the pocket of his jeans at the bell of the song "Secuencia inicial" by Soda Stereo. She signaled that she would answer the call, to which he nodded.

"What's up?" She picked up the cell phone in an abrupt tone. "Oh, yes, Ryo."

Naoki rolled his eyes as he pressed his lips to rage; that friend annoyed him just by hearing his name.

"You can't?" She asked in anguish. "Well, I understand if you can't go with me," she said safely, sitting in a better posture giving her a relaxed air. "I can go alone without problems." She waved her hand in a disinterested air as if she hadn't cared.

Instead, Naoki felt interest in the conversation, especially in the sentence 'I can go alone' and where could she go alone?

"Have fun, bye!" She hung up the cell phone.

She by placing it in her jeans pocket, she pulled her hair back in a gesture of preparing to march to the supposed destination she would go to. She stood up in spring by jumping forward with both feet.

"Where are you going?" He questioned before she could leave; He was not yet willing to part with her so soon. Kotoko stopped, stopping her next move, stirring up in Naoki a sense of relief noticing that she had heard him.

"To the Shibuya district" She replied in surprise, raising a finger toward the exit of the school. "Why?" She wanted to know, recovering from his sudden question.

"I accompany you" He offered himself looking disinterested in his tone of voice, but nevertheless his actions proved otherwise. "I have nothing else to do and I don't feel like going home so early" He said complainingly, putting both hands in his pants pockets.

She gave him a scrupulous look, placing a finger under her chin indicating she was thinking; in what he, very desperately awaited her response.

"Well, you can come." She agreed with a complacent smile.

That was the answer he wanted.

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**P.S. **What do you think? Apparently Kotoko is already falling in love with Naoki! And he doesn't fully understand it, but it does not matter, there is already a greater connection between them that not even Kin-chan or Matsumoto can intervene.


	21. My inner conflicts

They took the bus leaving the university, leaving Kotoko's bicycle in the parking lot so he wouldn't have to use it.

In that, he remained quite composed in comparison to his previous behavior on campus where there were in both different reactions in relation to the physical contact that originated because of Kotoko's clumsiness (if it can be considered as clumsiness).

"You're very quiet," Kotoko commented as they walked through the Shibuya district at sunset time. They could see the reddish rays of the sun hiding behind the horizon, leaving a branch of reddish and orange colors to fade, giving way to the dark colors they reflected at dusk.

"You too" He stressed tricky, arching an eyebrow. "I don't mind if you don't talk" He added, somehow trying to provoke a reaction in her. She had been very quiet since they left the bicycle in the parking lot, something she did not see coming and she was surprised to see her that way knowing that she was characterized as being very talkative.

"Do you insinuate something?" She saw him sidelong, raising her left eyebrow, sketching a mischievous smile on her side.

"I don't know." He pretended not to understand her, shaking his head sideways. "What about you?" He raised his eyebrows, grinning sideways. "Besides what are we doing here?" He inquired about it.

"I came to film," She replied curtly, tilting her head in mania. "To capture the apparent movement through the camera lens." She pulled her camcorder out of the backpack as a trophy, raising it in the air, giving the impression that she was praising her.

"The apparent movement?" He repeated interested.

"Yes" She said, approvingly. "To film the night lights," she specified, ignoring what was said. "And it's already obscuring and that means." She turned on the camcorder, excited. "Time to work!" She lit up her face, pointing to the illuminated signs with the camera lens, looking for a fixed point at which she could capture the movement she wanted to find so much.

"Is that for a final project?" He asked in a moderate tone, trying to keep his voice from being heard by the camera, in case one of his friends knew that the two went to film the work.

She nodded.

"I must catch the constant movement of the lights." She notified him with one eye open and the other glued to the lens. "And we can talk, I'll take the sound off the video" She warned quietly, seeming selfless in the matter of Naoki's concerns. "Tell me, Naoki-kun, do you like to walk at night in the city?" She questioned without looking at his face, a detail that bothered him when he felt he was not taken into account, although perhaps the thing was not so.

"Yes" he said statically.

"Accompanied or alone?"

"Is it relevant to know that?" He inquired raising his left eyebrow suspiciously, holding his gaze to her that she didn't turn to see him.

"You don't need to answer me." She kept talking like nothing. "I just want to talk to you, to get to know you more." She emphasized the last sentence, stopping dry. Naoki was taken aback by her sudden action.

"Know me more?" He repeated again, but this time he didn't want to hide his emotion. On the contrary, it sounded hopeful.

"Yes, what else may interest me more than part of my final project?" She pulled another lens from her backpack and changed it. It seemed safe with his words, however, Naoki couldn't get carried away by the emotions he was just feeling and if he acted impulsively he would step on a point of no return. He was afraid of being discovered before he personally confessed to her, despite witnessing a time when he could do it. "We're friends ..." She let the phrase float in a voice that he interpreted as a threat, not with her, but with her person.

"Kotoko" he spoke clearly, getting the girl's attention.

"Tell me," she said once installing the new lens to the camera.

"Do… Do… do you like me?" He asked, hiding his shyness, but that didn't stop that his cheeks had blushed to the point of feeling them burning.

"If I like you?" She said with an expression of wanting to understand the question.

He nodded, suppressing his face not to look excited.

"I imagine in the romantic sense" She supposed, seeing him in the face.

_What else can I be talking about?_

He rolled his eyes impatiently.

"Naoki-kun, if I'm honest" She said, wrinkling her eyebrows, calm more than anything. "I am not in a position to fall in love, but I cannot be closed to every man who comes across me"

What the hell did that mean?

He raised his eyebrows completely disoriented with the conversation, however Kotoko didn't seem to care much about the matter because she immediately continued to film the continuous movement of the lights lit at night.

His day was not going in the right direction, and what else could he do about it if it was enough to accompany her? He didn't understand what his urgency was in forcing Kotoko's feelings into existing, in being one with his own.

He admitted that he did care to know Kotoko's feelings, but he could not enter unknown territory without having prepared for the impact he could receive once he entered, because if he did, there would be no escape.

But, she just told him that she wasn't closed to any man who crossed in front of her, and if that meant that she had not closed her heart completely? That meant he had a chance to make her fall in love with him. What else could it mean?

He smiled enthusiastically to himself, taking the course that Kotoko was running at full speed with the camcorder in hand and the backpack hanging on her back.

"Naoki-kun, hurry up" She said, turning her head in his direction.

"I'm coming," he snapped angrily, lowering his hand to his pants pocket, consumed by his internal conflicts.

Life could not be more cruel to him, thus being that, in broad strokes, fate itself hated him greatly.

He was noted that there was no worse thing than fate, because if he had been good to him, he would live a very comfortable life beside Kotoko with zero damage and zero conflicts to keep the relationship afloat. He rubbed on his face that he had repeated it several times until he reached a point of no return in his life, which, in turn, became complicated because he was still on the same line without drawing his goal.

A line that separated him from Kotoko.

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**P.S.** Kotoko, in effect, is falling in love with Naoki and tries to push him away, but will they believe it will be possible? Naoki should not miss the opportunity presented to him.


	22. Awkward encounter

As soon as he was about to warn her, he saw that instead of crashing into the pole she crashed into a tall man with a haughty countenance.

The man held her as soon as both bodies collided, seeing that she sighed in fright without releasing the camcorder from her hand.

Then he went to her with the intention of removing her from the problem, in case the man with whom he crashed was a nuisance; the air almost escaped from his lungs as soon as he realized who the man he met was.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Kotoko crouched down apologizing in a good way, but Naoki pushed them away with his right arm moving Kotoko to his side in protective instinct.

The man, or rather, the boy was the rogue captain, the one who shot Kotoko not once, but twice during the basketball game last year. That individual did not deserve his kindness.

Naoki frowned, watching him dismissively, while the rogue captain raised his eyebrows effusively, stepping back, apparently recognizing him instantly.

"Irie Naoki?" He muttered strangely.

He nodded, sighing from the height of his chest.

"Is that girl Aihara?" He pointed at Kotoko with his index finger, doubtfully.

"Do I know you?" Kotoko questioned, wrinkling the gesture as if she wanted to remember that wretched boy's face, but Naoki didn't want to let him be.

"Then in a sense" said the boy, shaking his head in the direction of the sky in relief. "We know each other, Aihara" He said confidently, putting both hands in his pockets.

Kotoko looked at him confused, tilting her head; Naoki, on the other hand, was impatient and of course, if he was facing someone who hurt Kotoko. It was a fact that he considered unforgivable.

"Where?" She wanted to know.

"From nowhere!" Naoki said denying, he took Kotoko from the forearm ready to get away from that subject, but:

"Hold on!" The boy exclaimed, taking Kotoko from the other arm, unwilling to let her go, so it seemed at a distance that they both fought for her.

"Em ..." She made an awkward grimace, absent from the situation she was forced to live in.

"Aihara, I want to apologize," the alarmed boy muttered, ducking his head as a supposedly noble act. "During the basketball game I really wanted to get the scholarship to enter Tonan, and it bothered me when I didn't get it." He stopped to catch air. "I was blinded, and he was stupid to hurt a woman knowing he was a better athlete than me."

They both remained silent, waiting for the silence to transmute in some way, and seeing that despicable subject, he realized that his expression was sincere so he could not interfere unless Kotoko asked him to do so, although he doubted to let it be that way.

Naoki looked at the thoughtful gesture, somehow analyzing the rogue captain, to what he supposed, perhaps he hurt her for spite, but that did not justify his behavior, so he did not deserve his forgiveness.

As the seconds advanced through the hands of the clock, he became impatient with Kotoko's silence. He was intrigued by what was going on in her head. How much will she think? He wondered frustrated.

"Aihara?" The boy said. Naoki looked up at him looking at him menacingly.

_You don't hurt Kotoko again_, he conveyed that message from his gaze.

"Don't tell me Aihara, please," Kotoko spoke loudly and clearly, letting go of Naoki's contact, who was alarmed at her action.

"I…" The boy raised his eyebrows, surprised.

"I apologize for what you did that time" She said looking mature, sure of what she said. "But, it took you a long time to come to apologize" She rectified, making a quick eyebrow movement where she raised and lowered them to emphasize her words.

"Yes, it was a bad move on my part" He said, grinding his teeth in shame. "As soon as I realized my mistake, I was ashamed!" He covered his face with open hands.

"There's no need for you to hide your face," Kotoko said, smiling sideways, causing Naoki to turn his heart, without anticipating it as usual. "Don't exaggerate"

_That I don't exaggerate?_ Naoki's skin stopped the effect of Kotoko's words, being so understanding and so kind, but telling that subject not to overdo it drove him crazy.

"Eh yes" He muttered under his breath, lowering his hands from his face. "I know I don't deserve to be your friend or something, but I have to tell you something that will probably interest you," he said persuasively.

"Something that interests me?" She said in a sigh.

"Yes" affirmed good-natured (characteristic that irritated Naoki to the bone)

"What is it?" She demanded to know, taking a small step to the side of Naoki, who froze at the impression of noticing that she approached him even if it was a little. "Tell me"

"Someone you know." He began in a mysterious air. "He asked me to look for you and apologize, but I did the same because I intended to formally apologize to you for what I did." Seeing that she didn't speak, he continued. "To not make you the longest story, is someone you know since high school"

"High school?" She didn't let even half a second after finishing the sentence, so that Kotoko burst into intrigue. "But who?

"That's not my turn to say." He waved his hand behind his shoulder. "But to you" He emphasized, watching her sideways.

"I want you to tell me." She asked to know, but he was leaving the place saying goodbye with his hand as he turned his back indifferently. "Hey! You didn't even tell me your name"

"Nakagawa" He replied ten meters away. "That name you do know"

From there, they saw how he took the bus at its proper stop, thereby disappearing from his views as if it were a figment of his imagination.

"Nakagawa?" Kotoko repeated, forcing herself to remember.

"Don't force yourself, Kotoko," Naoki said in a subtle tone. "He's such a nasty guy, you don't have to listen to him."

"But I do know that name." She mentioned.

He stopped, feeling a pale irritation sitting furtively in the pit of his stomach, adding that his throat dried up.

"Yes?" He sounded unrestrained.

"Oh I know!" She exclaimed in Eureka. "Nakagawa Taketo." She opened her mouth in amazement, accompanied by her large eyes that lit up at her discovery.

Naoki didn't want to speak, rather than frown.

He was no longer in a good mood.

"He was with me on the basketball team" She commented. "But I'm surprised he said he was with me in high school, because he was in Tonan with us but a year later"

"I see." He sounded disconnected, evicted.

"But that's the subject for another time," Kotoko replied, trying to cheer him up in her own way. "Let's continue with what we came to do"

"Rather what you came to do" He remarked, feeling strange in the middle; made curious for someone of its kind. "Not me"

"Well, what I." She put a hand on her chest pointing at herself. "Came to do" She smiled and continued filming the movement of the lights on at night, sometimes singing a song, sometimes about to crash with strangers to what he came to her aid every time he witnessed such a scenario.

The line that separated him from Kotoko was increasing and lengthening instead of bringing them closer.

But, that was what he believed.

What he didn't not expected was that fate had other moves for the future, moves that might give him the happiness he sought and fugitive in the environment.

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**P.S.** Another chapter ready to be read by you. Here is the first official mention of Taketo Nakagawa (although he came out in the chapter of "The game" of the first part, but we only mentioned his name, not his full description), who will appear in the next chapters as another heavy rival for Naoki, of which, he will try to face his way so that Kotoko does not fall in love with him, although he does not know that she is falling in love with Naoki.


	23. Mess in the restaurant

Naoki-kun," Kotoko called him at the traffic light stop.

"Yes?" He turned to see her, still stunned because they had spent some time together walking the streets of the Shibuya district without getting into any place, and it didn't seem that they would end soon. The fatigue was coming, but he refused to give priority to sleep since he was with his special person and he wouldn't change that for anything.

"Do you think if we go to a place?" She asked, showing her expression of doubt, grinding her teeth and shrugging her shoulders. She looked like a girl when she made that expression.

"Local?" He raised an eyebrow, suspicious. "Didn't we just come to film the apparent movement and come back?" He tilted his head in a good-natured gesture.

"Well" She laughed nervously, looking away. "It's that I got hungry" She confessed.

A genuine smile escaped him.

"Come on, Kotoko" He said, softened by the situation.

* * *

Both entered a cafeteria in the Shinjuku district from which they took a bus and got off at the indicated stop, walked a few streets called "Breizh cafe Creperie" of French food. They took a seat at a circular wooden table for two people.

"Creperie, eh?" Kotoko sighed curtly, raising her eyebrows.

"What do creperies have?" He inquired uneasily of his reaction.

"They seem formal to me." She placed her fingers on the table, resting her forearms on the edge of the circular table, dropping her shoulders toward the floor. "They have a serious atmosphere, I dare to say that pretentious, yes, that" At that moment the waitress appeared, who managed to listen to Kotoko.

Naoki clenched his jaw in the same shame, bringing a hand to his forehead wanting to disappear from there.

"Your menu." She handed them two menus with a frown, not looking at Kotoko's face laughing at her meddling.

"Thanks" She thanked mockingly. "Waitress" She burst out laughing, showing her childish side, who just by smiling at things began to look at a better angle.

"Kotoko, we didn't come here to make fun of the waitress." He scolded in an authoritative pose, bringing his torso toward the table in imperative action.

"But you chose the place" She huffed stubbornly.

_Oh right…_

She was right, he had chosen the place without thinking about the consequences of Kotoko's imprudence, although it didn't bother him at all that she did what she pleased, as long as he saw her smile. He would even dare to see the world burn.

"At least behave in this place" He ordered, crossing his arms, raising an eyebrow in authoritarian mode.

"Are you telling me?" She raised her eyebrows playfully. He nodded without saying a word. "Well, it's justifiable" She said repeatedly. "Because I let you choose, since I always choose"

"Obviously," He said narcissist.

"You are very conceited, Naoki-kun" She replied, wrinkling her nose, crossing her arms resignedly.

He would not say the presumed term, but presumptuous.

Although he discarded out being a man of many words because saying a lot, he was rather few words, but always getting to the point.

He sighed overwhelmed by the situation he considered derailed, because he wanted to cover other issues with Kotoko, rather personal issues.

Talking about feelings were not his thing, they were pure nonsense of youth.

Talking about music was not his forte either, but he had been spending time collecting cassettes of the genre of music that Kotoko liked.

But he had to do something, it was talk, that is, talk.

The waitress reappeared to take their order, however, Kotoko changed her expression to a joker, but not presumed.

"Waitress." She laughed behind her hands that covered her mouth.

The waitress made a selfless shake of her head, snorting irritated. Naoki, decided to intervene before the problem got bigger.

"We know what we're going to order" He spoke, making his best kind smile, forcing his voice out elegant.

"Yes?" The waitress, who, in his view, was interested in him, wrote down both of them and as soon as she looked at Kotoko's mocking face she left again, irritated.

"Kotoko, stop laughing at the waitress" He scolded her sternly, frowning, placing both hands open on the table, making her stagger from the impression of seeing him that way.

"Okay." She put her hands defensively at chest height. "I will leave the waitress alone" she assured, opening her eyes, regaining the earlier relaxed posture on the chair.

He lowered his shoulders, feeling that the accumulation of tension emptied of his body as if the bad energies vanished from his point of settlement. The tension, in itself, was not because of Kotoko, but of being run from the restaurant and being objects of mockery for the other clients that were in the premises. Being an object of mockery was an idea he didn't like at all.

He didn't know how Kotoko could live by being the laughing stock at her acquaintances and, on top of that, to endure it.

"Naoki-kun?" She called him attentively, directing her a fixed look, tilting her head.

"Hm" He regained his attention, somewhat disoriented, but at least recovered.

"You looked thoughtful" She commented, bewildered, without losing sight of him. "I'm intrigued to know what you think." She laced her fingers on the table, raising a dangerous hunch in him, because he felt his cheeks begin to turn a pale pink.

"What do I think?" He questioned, his heart pounding from his chest.

She nodded.

"I won't tell you what's going on in my head" He grunted grimly, raising his chin in selfless air.

"But I do tell you what's going on in mine." She boasted, shaking her head from side to side, whistling. "For example, I told you the story that happened when I lost my house"

"The one when the earthquake passed?" He asked smiling mockingly. She nodded.

"Do you understand my point?" She smiled sideways.

"Yes" He snorted, straightening his back, giving himself a mature appearance, but without appearing frivolous as his past self would. "To talk more about my thoughts" He said in an annoying facade.

"Exactly" She pointed affirmatively. "If you're not honest with people, how are they going to understand you?"

_You won't say the same if I tell you that I like you_, he snorted in his mind.

"I got it" He refuted grimly, biting his lower lip trying not to dodge her eyes in case he looked obvious in his supposed annoying attitude. "You don't have to explain it to me"

"Really?" She stopped with her mouth open, blinking.

Naoki giggled, thinking that she looked funny making that gesture.

"Kotoko, I'll talk when I feel willing to do it" He explained, sketching a side smile, raising both eyebrows and then lowering them. "So there's no need for you to tell me, okay?" He raised an eyebrow, sounding clear.

"I believe" She affirmed, moving her mouth tight, as if she were assimilating it. "You don't want to talk, then?" She asked doubtfully, narrowing her eyes.

"It's not that" He refused. "The point is that I don't want to talk about myself"

Kotoko pondered his comment, nodding his head slightly, assimilating —what he supposed, he had said—.

"You better focus your attention on the food" He said resigned to talking about himself. "It's better that way"

He acknowledged being clumsy to start the conversations, joining what happened with the rogue captain who called himself Nakagawa, that nothing of grace seemed to give him more than pure embarrassment.

He discarded his annoyance in Kotoko, because he liked her, but he didn't rule out the idea that she might be interested in finding the supposed cousin of Nakagawa, because he knew she was a rather curious person, and if so, his opportunities could go to trash if he didn't hurry. He was irritated when he remembered that he must be quick and assertive in matters of love, but he was still clumsy, insecure, even looking away.

That new facet of him caused him nothing but discomfort.

He swallowed, weighing both hands together, causing friction.

He noticed that Kotoko couldn't understand what he wanted to explain, so he decided to intervene.

"Don't worry about me" He said sparingly. "You better focus on your things that are more important than mine, I can solve those things" He said affirmatively.

"I'm interested in you" She confessed hastily, giving him an intense look, causing him to drown in his own saliva.

What had just happened?

"Excuse me?" He muttered scratchy.

"You interest me, Naoki-kun" Kotoko looked at him with such intensity that he thought he would die right there. She had never looked at him that way. "I'm interested in what happens with you, what you do, what you want to do" She said wildly. "I'm interested in everything about you"

He was slow to respond, paralyzed by Kotoko's sudden confession, which had partly left disoriented him.

Did Kotoko hint that she felt things for him?

"Now I am clear?" She concluded, sketching an innocent smile.

Naoki swore that his heart stopped at that brief moment.


	24. Confessions of a painful past

"I'm not understanding" He muttered under his breath, feeling his hands tremble, his heart was beating with the speed of lightning and his mind was machining fired thoughts flying through the confines of his prodigious brain.

"You don't understand what I'm trying to say?" She said incredulously. He denied.

She sighed, lowering her shoulders.

"We're friends, Naoki-kun" She clarified seriously. "And as the friends we are we must tell each other everything"

_Ah…_ he sighed dejectedly. _Friends, huh?_ Why should she fall in love with him if there were better candidates for her than he?

He dropped his shoulders, feeling a sorry feeling settling in the pit of his stomach.

"Friends…" The phrase came out of his mouth hanging from a thread too thin that threatened to break before the slightest friction that was put on him.

"We're friends, aren't we?" She asked. "Or are we more than friends?"

_I want to be more than friends_, he said in his mind.

"For you, what is being more than friends?" He returned the question, sullenly.

Kotoko looked at him, frowning.

"Well, being a boyfriends, isn't it?" She replied uncomfortably. "Hold hands, hug, and ..." He saw her blush on her cheeks. "Kiss"

"Do you want that?" He spoke feeling his heart was threatening to explode. Reflecting that if he did not discover what was going on in Kotoko's mind, they would never be boyfriends. "Do you want us to hold hands, hug each other, and kiss?"

"I don't know." She looked away, looking confused.

"Do you feel things for me, Kotoko?"

He knew that he was cornering her, and that she might hate him for that, but he needed to confirm Kotoko's feelings as to how it gave rise.

"I don't know." She replied again.

"Can you imagine that we hold hands?"

"I don't… I don't know." She looked like a helpless girl, responding that way.

"Do you want those things to happen between us?" He asked anxiously to know. "Because I don't"_ Have problem with that._

"Enough!" Kotoko slammed the table with both hands open, causing a loud sound. Customers were stunned, as was Naoki. "Shut up, Naoki!"

She had just said his name without using the honorific.

"Koto"

"Don't talk anymore!" She shouted in frustration, holding on to her ears. "I don't want to hear you"

"But"

"Shut up, Naoki!" She screamed without taking her hands off her ears, angry. "Shut up once and for all!"

The silence of the restaurant paralyzed him, and thinking about it, he realized that he had gone very far with his questions with the intention of wanting to know her own feelings, but he did it the wrong way.

Naoki was not in a position to speak to her, or even to touch her. In this case, he deserved a slap for his immature behavior.

He watched Kotoko's features fade, seeing how her always confident countenance changed to one that expressed resentment and pain; her eyes crystallized, her mouth trembled and her whole body too.

He lamented the rest when he saw her running out of the restaurant, taking her backpack from the chair at once.

_I'm an idiot! _He cursed himself, leaving the money for the food that had not yet arrived and leaving behind it.

"Kotoko!" He called her, seeing that she was moving away from him. "Wait!" He exclaimed trying to hold her.

She kept walking steadily on the sidewalk.

"Hold on!" He decided to run to her.

As soon as he reached her, he held her arm, shaking her so that she wouldn't get out of his sight. He felt her shudder, hugging herself as she shivered from her shoulders.

"Kotoko" He said her name softly, wanting to sound subtle to his ears. "It wasn't my intention to talk to you that way" He explained, but she stopped him, looking up at him.

"Why did you do it?" She asked in a broken voice. Naoki felt his heart crack when he saw her hurt, and more because he was to blame for her crying.

"I wanted to know your feelings" He replied, slightly looking away from her gaze, hiding in himself what he really wanted to convey. He saw her get out of touch, in self-defense.

"My feelings?" She asked incredulously, taking a deep breath. "Why?"

_Because I like you_, he thought.

But, what came out of his mouth was pure mutism. He didn't have the courage to tell her, to tell her he loved her, even when she cried.

It would seem like an advantage if he told her his true feelings.

"Naoki-kun?" Kotoko said his name causing him a benevolent sensation. His skin was bristling when she said his name in a low voice.

"It wasn't my intention" He repeated the sentence, short of what to say.

"You talked as if you knew everything about me." She said cautiously, dropping her arms at her sides.

He wanted to say something, but he couldn't find the words to describe his past behavior.

"When you don't know anything" She said.

"Then tell me, what I don't know" He demanded to know, altering himself. With his own stupidity. Kotoko paused, perplexed. "What do I not know?" He repeated, approaching her.

He saw her meditate on his question, placing a finger under her chin, frowning.

"I'm afraid of falling in love again" She confessed, lowering his finger on his chin, simultaneously the pool of tears contained in her eyes symbolized her inner struggle. "I'm afraid to fall in love again and have my heart broken."

Naoki was surprised by her confession, although in part he deduced that this could be one of several reasons why she refused to have a boyfriend, but now that he was listening to her clearly, he could know that he was wrong to have cornered her.

He was a complete idiot.

"Keita broke my heart." She kept talking, looking down at the park they were both heading as soon as she started walking. He obviously went after him like an eagle. "But first he rejected me when I gave him the love letter, but soon he regretted having done it." He saw her take a breath before continuing to speak. "And he told me that he liked me, but he rejected me at that moment by the same surprise that my confession had been very hasty, and he asked me to be his girlfriend." She smiled wistfully. "We were a couple for six wonderful months, but that happiness didn't last as long as I thought it would last." She lowered her head, picking up her hair, carrying it behind her shoulders. "He broke up with me in front of everyone, then the next day he disappeared and I didn't know more about him."

Naoki was paralyzed from the same impression. That vile man hurt her when they still didn't know each other.

"I didn't know" He muttered in a breath of air.

"He told me I was an ugly woman" She confessed with severe resentment. "That I was too childish to walk with someone like him, and that my red hair made me look like an easy one."

_He is a damn!_ He exclaimed in his mind, raging inside.

Kotoko an ugly woman? If she was very pretty in his eyes.

"But I know I'm not an ugly person." Tears had stopped spilling down her cheeks. "Even so, I dyed my hair black so I wouldn't remember his words." She nodded to herself in reminder of those events. "I think it was the best decision I could have made back then, because dyeing my hair black was a risk I wanted to take and to date I don't regret doing it" She assured, recovering the color of her white complexion, and her sad features began to change.

"Did you dye your hair because of him?" He questioned, knowing he would find one of the answers that caused him so much intrigue. He was aware of the situation in which he subjected Kotoko to revive, but he wanted to be someone Kotoko could trust at all costs.

"Yes." She nodded, clenching her lips in tune with her question. "Curious, isn't it?"

"It doesn't seem like it" He said.

"But it helped me get over him." She smiled in pleasure. "It was much easier to get ahead"

"And he gave you your first kiss?" He barked in his sullen voice.

"Em, yes." She nodded uncomfortably. "It was shortly after we started dating, he kissed me when we won the winter championship basketball game."

_I didn't wanted so many details,_ he grumbled in his head.

"But you love him, don't you?" He asked sounding hopeful, even though his voice was always monotonous. "You still feel things for him, don't you?"

She stopped, stopping the passage.

"No" She replied annoyed. "He doesn't deserve my love!" She shook hands. "I stopped loving him until recently."

Recently? What would have detonated for her to stop loving him?

His curiosity was gushing out, eager to get the necessary information about Kotoko's life.

"You have the face of wanting to know the reason" She said, nodding forward. She used to be successful in deducing what was going through his mind. "If I tell you, you won't tell anyone?" She asked hopefully.

"Why should I tell anyone?" He asked, raising his chin, appearing to be offended. "Tell me" He ordered.

"I think I like someone" She confessed, putting both hands together in embarrassment. He saw her cheeks blush, and her voice sounded tiny.

He saw her so helpless that his static body vibrated and shuddered.

"What?" His body clouded completely.

"I'm not quite sure" She said, nodding her head. "But, I think I like someone." She shrugged, looking up.

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**P.S.** The chapter is intense, but I wanted to do it that way because I felt that I didn't put a lot of drama because it added pure humor and the plot probably wasn't going anywhere, then a bit of drama and personal confessions to make everything more efficient.

Hopefully and you liked it, you can leave your comments, but enjoy reading.


	25. Kotoko's feelings

"And who is that someone?" He said questioning, trying to keep the panic tied inside. "If it can be known"

He saw her little on her cheeks, and an innocent smile appeared on her pink lips. The image he witnessed made him shiver.

"You know him very well." She emphasized the "very well" raising her eyebrows as if she wanted to say something important between the lines, but he fell short of understanding the message.

Who the hell is the guy who conquered Kotoko, without being him?

"You know him so well" She kept hinting at him. "That they can even be the same person." She raised her voice in a sarcastic tone. "He lives in the Setagawa district and he is very intelligent." Again, she remarked the "very intelligent" in his face, wanting to make him understand something behind her words, but he still didn't understand.

"I don't know who you're talking about." He articulated reluctantly. He thought she was talking about someone else, or some other subject who had made Kotoko's heart beat at a thousand an hour, while he, a poor crush who just screwed up.

She blew in frustration, rolling her eyes.

"Don't you know who I mean?" She questioned incredulously, making a desperate gesture. "You really don't know?"

"No" He replied annoyed.

"You are very dense, Naoki-kun." She smiled mockingly.

"Are you making fun of me?" He inquired annoyed.

"No." She stuck out her tongue mocking him. "But, I'm surprised you're so dense."

"Kotoko," he tried to approach, however, he kept it by putting his hand up.

"Don't worry about it," she warned for sure. "I'll show you who the guy I like is." She smiled mockingly, taking two steps toward his direction, allowing a minimum of free space to separate them from that gap.

His heart stopped when he saw her that way. _How cute!_ He exclaimed, letting out a slight blush on his burning cheeks.

The love he felt for her, sprouted and expanded through the corners of the universe until it became an abyss that surrounded him with only heat and conviction.

Everything he longed to convey, everything he struggled to demonstrate on a daily basis paused knowing that perhaps the man she wanted was not him.

A deep sadness invaded his body.

"Naoki-kun?" Kotoko turned to see him directly in the face. He, upon noticing it, looked away with his ridiculous loser behavior. He wasn't like that.

"I'm fine" He muttered angrily at himself, wanting to disappear. Running away was always his solution, the one that worked best for him and the one that didn't change for other options.

He already considered himself a clumsy lover with an evicted and discouraged heart.

He began to walk in the opposite direction, crestfallen; Suddenly, arms held him from behind, paralyzing him as if he were a statue.

His entire body stopped.

Her sadness dissipated from his body as if she sucked her with her tremendous willpower; and with it, the conflicting feelings he felt seconds before vanished for a brief moment.

But, he knew that he must return to reality instead of staying in his little world of love fiction.

"Kotoko?" He articulated, noting that his voice was trembling as his static body showed a contrary reaction. His hands went up to hers, taking her kindly, feeling the warmth she radiated.

"I'm not going to let you go!" She warned out loud, determined to hold him. She put pressure on his body, stretching what her arms could over him.

Never before had she done such a lively action.

"Why-why?" He inquired restless and anxious to know.

If she gave him a silly excuse like that of 'we are friends' he would go home.

That hug didn't seem to be "friends" as he would say, but a romantic and sincere hug that probably, no, was not a probability, but a fact that united them.

Seeing that she didn't speak, he questioned her again.

"I don't want to let you go, Naoki-kun" She expressed convict. "Not when…" He locked, hiding his face on his back.

Not when what? That question usurped his mind.

He took one of her hands, and turned her toward him, separating her from his back. So that they could be seen face to face.

His mouth tasted strange, and the like rollovers and his chest was jumping everywhere, hands were sweating just as his body and threatened to rise to sudden temperature levels.

Sometimes he believed that his body reacted strangely when it came to matters of love.

"Not when, what? Kotoko" He demanded to know, exercising authority in his voice. He swallowed when he saw that her lips were parted and pink from his point of view. If it wasn't because he expected an answer from her, he would kiss her without hesitation. He saw her panic. "Tell me!"

She nodded, her eyes moving conflict. He was about to give up trying to find out the motive behind Kotoko's actions, but it wasn't that way.

She tried to calm down, breathing deeply so that she can respond.

"Can you tell me?" He put his hands on Kotoko's shoulders. "If you don't tell me" He tried to threaten her. "I'll kiss you" He added, feeling a stinging on his palate.

He closed his eyes wanting to disappear from the face of the earth for their useless behavior.

"What?!" He saw her pale.

"What you heard, Kotoko" He took courage from who knows where, emulating from his body an energy that demonstrated his urgency in knowing the truth. Possibly the truth to release him so much cowardice on his part. "I'll kiss you if you don't tell me" He threatened coldly, hearing his voice come out sullen and dark. "What will you do, Kotoko?"

"I won't tell you" Kotoko replied altered.

He swallowed, feeling a lump in his throat appear, and decided to keep his word, to which he lowered his head towards his half-open mouth. He narrowed his eyelids to reach her, when…

"What happens is that" She began babbling. He, at that moment, stopped within inches of her mouth, feeling the breath she emitted from his nose. "I don't want to lose you" She confessed openly, putting both hands on his arms to hold him firmly in her grip.

"What?" He remained static.

What came out of Kotoko's mouth, was it real? Could he believe it?

"Why do you say that?" He muttered breathlessly, breathing agitatedly from her confession.

"Sometimes I feel you distant." She looked up, expressing hazelnut pleading in her eyes. "And sometimes I feel you hate me."

Did he hear well? That he hates her? He frowned, opening his mouth slightly in surprise.

"Sorry?"

"It seems you hate me" She said. "Or that you dislike me?"

Did he really give that impression? But if he loved her with fervor, admiration and above all with burning affection.

He lacked reasons to underestimate his constant stupidities that he repeated for fear of being discovered, for cowardice, rather, and if he continued taking that path it was for an idiot. A great idiot, that was what he was. A great and pathetic idiot who instead of giving security to the girl he loved, he gave her insecurities.

In truth he was pathetic.

"You won't lose me so easily" He said agitatedly, over taken by emotion. He saw her leave the panic expression on her face, to which he sighed in relief.

"Are you serious?" She turned to look hopeful. He nodded surrendered to her charms, as always. "I look very loud, don't you? You surely might think that I look pathetic." She laughed nervously, releasing him at that moment.

Another sadness arose in his body, feeling desolate of her presence, again, as always.

It was always he who felt sad and unfortunate when he didn't know how to act, or the one who always went after her as a lapdog. But what else could he do? If all he wanted was her affection, the love and affection of Kotoko, just that.

However, he admitted to seeing that in her he began to see a change with respect to each other, in a way, that his connection instead of moving away, was intertwined by the mockery of fate.

The manipulative arms of destiny that kept shaking him until he was fed up with his inconstant conflicts.

He never finished solving one when another approached him.

"Of course not." He denied any possibility that she would consider herself pathetic, if the pathetic here was him. "I don't think you're pathetic, Kotoko."

_On the contrary, you are the cutest girl of all._

"Annoying sometimes, yes" He added, gritting his teeth in mockery. "But not pathetic."

"I'd rather be annoying than pathetic" She replied smiling.

"You have that feature more"

"Then I won't lose you?" She asked, reflecting initiative.

"No" He said, sounding accurate.

"Well, then let's go." She winked at him, smiling.

* * *

He accompanied her to her apartment, lightening that burden that, in one way or another, subjected him to self-torture to achieve something.

He left her, without explaining his feelings, without anticipating how much he loved her despite everything, despite the fact that time was not enough to embrace her for a lifetime, even though she was so cute and he was a stupid in love.

He said goodbye to her, feeling his chest clench and writhe in the deep sadness that made him feel that way: dissatisfied.

Since his unhappiness was due to the fact that he was very negative and cowardly to act, and to risk making decisions that ultimately could be the right ones.

Restricting his own happiness proved to be intolerable.

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**P.S. **This chapter is interesting, even when I wrote it I felt it that way. Kotoko is already willing to prove her love for Naoki even though he is not aware that he is who already won her heart. And he is so dense!

It will take some time for him to understand, but Kotoko's determination and conviction will be more assertive than his, so I took it as a key to accelerate the plot and not look like a story without direction.


	26. The pranks of Kotoko and Yuuki

He arrived home after the days of his date with Kotoko, any afternoon.

The airs of spring were approaching and the fresh winds of winter moved away from the epithelial proximity.

He placed his shoes on the shelf where they accommodated the shoes of each of his family, to put on the slippers he used to use when he was in the comforts of his home.

"Welcome, Onii-chan." His mother whistled smiling, he nodded blankly, as always.

"Onii-chan" His brother greeted him by looking up from the ground where he was doing homework.

Since Kotoko had moved out of his home, his brother started to do the homework in the living room instead of doing it in his room, since even if he didn't admit it, he felt lonely. And in solitude doing the homework wasn't given much to Yuuki, on the contrary, he took twice as much as being accompanied.

Naoki could say the same.

He felt lonely most of the time, even when he was with his family at the two meals of the day he shared with them, or even when his mother told him stories of how he had done on the day. It didn't matter how many things he was told and how many people were in the same existential space as him, because he would always feel alone.

He was a lonely man, and meaningless.

But, there was only one person in his life who gave a meaning to that life without having it, and that person had moved out of his house indefinitely.

He loved Kotoko, and he loved her very much, but that wasn't enough to make her stay in his home because he never rebelled her, for being a coward.

Only with Kotoko did he feel accompanied, like a man with meaning and completeness; He felt happy to live, and blessed with life. His life made sense when she was by his side.

Nothing was worth to him than her company.

With a sigh he dropped on the living room sofa, pounding his weight to fall straight into the seat. Rendered after having had a strenuous day of homework and studies.

He huffed annoyed, knowing that he hated engineering and was not happy in that angry career that did not provide him with the challenge he found in medicine.

"How was your day, Onii-chan?" His mother asked, bringing a cup of tea and tea bags of her choice. He accepted it pleased to have a drink that would relax his throat and with it, his entire body. He really felt glimpsed and heavy.

"Good" He replied immediately, indifferent to everything.

"Yuuki, today, invited Kotoko-chan to the house" She notified him with a sly expression. "And of course she accepted!"

"What?" His voice came stoic, something his mother didn't like very much. He saw her tense at his apparent indifference.

"Apparently he dialed her cell phone." She inquired, raising an eyebrow in modesty, glancing at her youngest son, who, fortunately, didn't pretend indifference or disturbance from the comments made by his mother.

"We keep in touch through social networks" He admitted, rolling his eyes. "Mom, don't try to spy on our conversations because I won't tell you which social networks that Baka uses to communicate" He warned.

"And what are you talking about?" His mother asked anxiously for information. "If I can know" She added in mock indignation.

"I won't tell you," he grumbled.

As far as Irie Naoki was concerned, he was thoughtful, remembering previously his last meeting with Kotoko. He seriously regretted his recklessness, having been too selfish could have cost him dearly.

He acknowledged behaving like an idiot, but it was worse, because he had made her cry. What would be a pleasant night between the two of them ended in a painful confession on her part when she told him events of her past, events that didn't please him, but that nevertheless were part of her life.

But he didn't forgive himself for making Kotoko cry. Watching her tears fade, her voice breaking, her eyes saddening and clouding, her body trembling, and above, cornering her. He, by all means, was an idiot, a reverend idiot!

But much to his regret, he had to face his mistake and keep trying to win Kotoko's heart regardless of the price and the time he managed to do it.

His mother approached him, making him return to himself momentarily.

"She'll arrive later so you better be nice to her." She ordered changing her expression to a severe one. "Because she comes with a plan to stay with us again!" She screamed that last sentence with infusion. "She said she probably gives us the date she lives with us again"

_What? Kotoko will come to the house? I haven't heard such good news like that in a while._

Truly? Naoki was petrified of emotion. He wanted to smile and celebrate it at four winds, but he wouldn't do it in front of his family, not even crazy!

He hadn't received good news for a long time.

* * *

After six in the afternoon, the bell rang.

His mother immediately shot out to the door to open it, while he and his brother were still in the living room hanging out as Kotoko arrived; he was too happy to hide it from the whole body, so if he neglected a little he could appreciate the brightness that his eyes reflected from close up.

His gray eyes shone, the product of the illusion of seeing the girl he loved sincerely with his heart. There was no explanation more elaborate than that.

"Hello family!" Kotoko appeared, exclaiming in joy from the entrance, spreading her arms, smiling brightly. Naoki's heart skipped a beat.

"Baka" Yuuki greeted her, showing his frown. "Did you bring what I asked for?"

"Of course!" She affirmed, nodding in affirmation. "I brought everything." She smiled.

"Kotoko-chan, take a seat." His mother offered her in great interest to hear her recent anecdotes, which, as always, were entertaining. "How was your way back?"

"It was fine" She replied, sitting on the mint green sofa that faced the opposite side of where Naoki was sitting. "By the way." She glanced at him. "Hi Naoki-kun, how are you?"

His throat got stuck, so talking to him cost him a job.

"Good." He simply responded, directing his attention to Kotoko's features and his well-being.

She looked healthy, vivacious and as cute as she was known. His hands came alive by brushing the tips of his fingers on his bare skin, so loose and visible so he could feel it.

His desires consumed him alive, aroused in him irregular behaviors of his behavior, but that in broad strokes, were not illicit acts of a young man of his age; rather, they were normal behaviors for a nineteen year old young man.

"Glad to know" Kotoko said, clapping her hands. "These days when I was preparing for the beauty contest, when I pass by the campus I see you training tennis and I am always impressed to see you"

"That's right, Onii-chan" His mother uttered enthusiastically. "It's impossible to beat him in tennis"

"I've seen him" Kotoko said. "And he makes tennis look like a simple sport." She opened her eyes wide, amazed. "Every time he hits the ball with the racket he looks like a titan" She made a gesture of great admiration for her person.

"Baka, don't tell me you like Onii-chan," Yuuki interjected, moody.

"What?" Kotoko blushed and jumped back on the couch. "I didn't say that!"

"I didn't invite you home to declare your love for Onii-chan" He said, staring at her. Did he see in his brother's gaze, jealousy?

All he needed was for his brother to be fixed in Kotoko from head to toe.

"What's wrong with Kotoko-chan falling in love with Onii-chan?" His mother claimed, hands clasped at her waist, folding her eyebrows.

"I didn't say anything," Kotoko spoke awkwardly.

"Me neither," Naoki complained, feeling the stinging penetrate her palate in a bitter and twisted sensation in relation to Kotoko's supposed rejection. "Don't talk about me like I'm not here" He closed his eyes as a headache invaded him.

"Well, changing the subject," Kotoko replied, laughing nervously with her hand behind the back of her neck. "I brought what Yuuki-kun asked me"

"Good to know that your stubbornness did not interfere in these cases," Yuuki said sarcastically. "If not, it would have been a disgrace if you didn't bring the movies I asked for"

"But I brought them." She boasted angrily. "And here they are" She opened the backpack, from the second zipper taking out one of the two compartments that formed it, rectangular contents, which Naoki assumed were the films that Yuuki asked for.

She took out three films, a cassette and circular figures, one red and the other blue. "With what do we start with?"

"Uh! Kotoko-chan" His mother exclaimed, sticking both hands on her cheeks in amazement. She stopped, looking at her strangely.

"What's up, Oba-sama?"

"I haven't seen that movie in years!" She gave a high-pitched shriek of emotion.

"What?" Kotoko had covered her ears, narrowing one eye, stunned. "What movie have you not seen?"

"That one!" He aimed at the air without a specific point, to which Kotoko separated the three films between his two hands so that she could tell him what he meant.

"Tell me" she commented peacefully. "What is the one you haven't seen for years?"

"Grease!" She replied, bouncing from the couch until standing; They saw her run in circles around the living room. Kotoko smiled amusedly, while Naoki admired her like an idiot from her seat, putting her hands in her pockets fighting her feelings so as not to imprison her in her arms in front of her family.

"Ah! I figured you'd say that" Kotoko said agreeing. "In fact, this movie was asked by Yuuki-kun, I originally didn't have it in my collection, so I bought it at a movie store in Shibuya district before coming here."

"Yuuki!" Mrs. Irie exclaimed in amazement with her youngest son; he colored his cheeks, completely flushed and somewhat annoyed at Kotoko's imprudence. The aforementioned, as she was well known, had not noticed her intrusion, so Naoki simply watched her glimpsed and lacking words to describe how beautiful that woman could become even when she was doing a racket.

"Baka!" Yuuki scolded her dismissively. "Why did you have to open your mouth!" He threw the book in her face, to which she replied, dodging it with his head.

"Do you think you can harm me with a silly elementary book?" She expressed in sarcasm, arching her left eyebrow.

"You'll see! Baka!" Yuuki challenged her, sticking his tongue out while lowering the lower part of his eyelids with a finger towards his. "You don't win me even in ingenuity" He smiled smugly.

"Oh yeah?" She inquired, standing up.

"Yes!" Yuuki followed, twisting the step, as Kotoko advanced on tiptoes with her legs apart.

"Children don't fight," Mrs. Irie intervened, but it was useless because both boys were facing each other in a challenging gesture.

"Mother," Naoki said seriously. "I don't think it's a good idea to intervene."

"Onii-chan" His mother snapped, pouting.

"I will teach you a lesson by opening your mouth so much" He warned, pointing his finger at her.

"No way I don't talk" She said sarcastically. "You would have to take my voice away so I can't speak anymore." She looked in, stealthily approaching Yuuki, who was still receding with his legs reeling in his own footsteps, while Kotoko moved forward unchanged. "Or you should teach me not to open my mouth so much" She articulated gesturing.

"Don't be so annoying, Baka!" The boy uttered, claiming her.

"Annoying, me? Won't you be the annoying one? "She inquired mockingly. "Who knows!" In that, Naoki saw that Kotoko pulled the bag where the circular figures were inside behind her denim pants. He frowned, lost in what was happening.

Kotoko took a sudden leap with both feet, throwing a red ball to his brother's face, watching his brother uselessly try to cover himself.

The ball bounced on the floor.

His mother let out another squeak from her mouth, in which Kotoko leaned back in triumph, but she didn't celebrate it completely because she ducked on her back when she saw that Yuuki took the red ball and returned it with his jaw clenched and a growl escaping from his twisted lips.

"You need more experience to beat me!" Kotoko sang, dodging the wrathful attacks of his younger brother, who in vain tried to hit Kotoko with the ball.

"Baka!"

Naoki laughed watching the exchange between his brother and Kotoko gracefully, where they both fought to win the game. A rather strange game, but a game at last.

His mother, on the other hand, tried by all means to calm them in case of causing any destruction in the room, but nevertheless, there was not a break and not an injured in the game.

"Stop running so much, Baka!" Yuuki shouted, throwing two balls of the two different colors that Kotoko had brought; she dodged them, first raising one leg where she spent a bounce and the other had the need to jump, and when she jumped she went on her mouth in the armchair of the room where he stood. He held his breath, watching her lightly brush the skin of his right arm with her left one.

Both skins brushed each other in a matter of seconds, and her black hair managed to penetrate his nostrils, leaving him stunned immediately.

That moment he felt it in slow motion, so slow that he could only consider it as if he had witnessed a movie, only that the only difference was that he was witnessed in the act.

He suppressed the smile that escaped his lips when he felt her so close, despite having her at home.

"Kotoko-chan!" His mother hystered hysterically, when Kotoko's body slammed into the living room floor, smashing her face with the wood of the floor. There was a rumble. "You're good?"

Naoki, still livid, paled when he heard the rumble near him; He looked down, and Kotoko was lying on the floor, millimeters from touching his leg, part of his skin as well.

He moved his altered leg from being so close to feeling that sensation penetrate his body.

"Aha" She assured, raising her thumb with her right hand.

"Baka, don't be so disastrous!" Yuuki grumbled, crossing his arms, as if boasting. "You almost ruin the decoration of the house"

"Oh" She rose suddenly, showing her red face because of the blow. "I'm sorry, Oba-sama, it wasn't my intention to cause damage because of my imprudence" She apologized, embarrassed.

"Oh no! Don't worry about it" His mother replied, putting the innocent gesture (same as Naoki hated for coming out so perfect, even in situations like this) "You didn't cause any damage"

"But, I could have caused one." She reiterated with wide eyes.

"No, but what do you say?" His mother dissuaded with her hand, leaving aside the game they had. "You know this is your home, and it always will be." She smiled kindly at Kotoko, who returned the gesture.

"Thank you, Oba-sama" She said. "I really miss living with you"

"And why don't you come back?" She suggested, putting a hand on Kotoko's hair, sliding it sideways. She looked down in thoughtful air. "Is there any other specific reason why you don't want to come back?"

"No." She shook her head.

"Oh!" He exclaimed in surprise. "Don't tell me it's about Onii-chan!"

"Me, what?" Naoki intervened, annoyed. He was not to blame that Kotoko had wanted to move.

"Naoki-kun?" Kotoko looked up, alarmed. "No! He has nothing to do with it"

"Mother, don't say weird assumptions" Naoki scolded her in an annoyed tone.

"You always treat her badly," her mother complained indignantly. "You ignore her every time she comes to the house and you don't care what happens to her."

Sorry? He doesn't care about Kotoko? The stinging he had felt on the palate resurfaced fervently, however, he must stand firm against the apparent accusations of which his mother made him a part.

"What's more, you didn't even ask her to come back to the house" His mother continued. "To help her take exams, I have to force you to do it because you don't want to help her or on your own; what have I done to have such a child?"

"Oba-sama, stop it!" Kotoko meddled among them, focusing more next to Naoki, who was about to burst out of anger listening to his mother tell him such lies. "It's not anyone's fault that I wanted to move" She said, extending both arms to separate them. Naoki felt her so close to him, although he couldn't touch her freely, while his mother was on pause, babbling and machining things for herself. "Don't worry, I'll solve it." She whispered to Naoki, looking at him sideways.

"Thanks" He whispered back. "Even if I didn't ask for your help"

"Kotoko-chan, you're too kind to forgive Onii-chan" His mother stressed, not before giving him a stern look.

"He has nothing to do with it" Kotoko snapped defensively. "This is not related to my leaving the house" She explained, moving her arms defensively.

"Let me scold my son," Mrs. Irie asked, frowning, pouting.

"No!" Kotoko prevented it, rightly. "In no way I will allow that!"

"Kotoko-chan!" His mother sighed in frustration.

"No, Oba-sama." She denied with her right hand with her index finger stopped. "Let's take it easy, this all started with a ball game, please calm down." She asked, nodding her head slightly, looking at both with reproach. "It was just a game, you don't have to take it personally."

It was true, it had only been a childish game that between them they took very much to heart, and they should not have time to make conjectures.

He possibly just behaved like an idiot in front of Kotoko.

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**P.S. **Another chapter uploaded! It's long, because I was inspired by the plot here and I also wanted the relationship between Yuuki and Kotoko to be fraternal, as it should be, although Naoki doesn't see it that way, thanks to his jealousy.


	27. The confidences of Kotoko and Yuuki

After a few minutes when the three were waiting, some kind of reaction one of them would execute. Mrs. Irie seemed to be about to collapse by exclaiming and ordering, Kotoko looked calm but not because of that, he could assume that his mind was like that; he, on the other hand, doubted what to do to improve the situation that his nosy mother just caused in his home.

It could have caused a collision of characters between her and Kotoko, which, it would not have been nice to witness.

Naoki, of course, knew that Kotoko was a free and independent person, she moved in the direction of her wishes and was a dreamer. Likewise, he knew that his mother was an explosive and ingenious woman, showing effusive affection and a severe character when things did not go their way.

If those women collided with each other, the result would be disastrous.

"Oba-sama" Kotoko was the first to speak. "Don't let your emotions dominate you" She warned solemnly, lowering the arms that separated the three of them. He noticed that his brother was spying on them with respect and admiration, silenced in the sofa seat, holding in his hands the films that Kotoko had brought.

"You're right, Kotoko-chan" She said in a sigh, shrugging her shoulders in defeat.

"It's common sense." She smiled, pleased with the goal of placating the situation.

"Baka" Yuuki grumbled, catching Kotoko's attention. "What movie do we start with?" Kotoko's eyes widened, in which her gestures turned into a thoughtful expression.

"Hm." She let out her lips.

"Don't make me wait," Yuuki warned, complaining with his head facing the ceiling.

"Can I see Grease with you?" Mrs. Irie intervened, making small leaps, excited, holding back the urge to make the biggest leap.

"Of course" Kotoko agreed, without removing the gesture from her face.

Mrs. Irie jumped for joy and ran out into the kitchen, saying she would bring popcorn to watch the movie, and also some blankets to wrap herself in the living room.

"Will Onii-chan stay with us?" Yuuki questioned uncertainly.

"Yes." Kotoko agreed again, frowning, ready to say. "Let's see Grease." She gave her mother the reason, so she wouldn't insist on seeing her after so many years without seeing her.

Upon entering, Mrs. Irie brought the popcorn fresh from the microwave, some butter cookies and cups of tea and bags of tea.

Naoki sat at the other end of the sofa where Kotoko and Yuuki had sat down, their mother placed herself in the middle of the living room, so she was the one who saw the movie in front.

At the beginning of the movie, Naoki found it embarrassing, and in turn, romantic; He was curious, because he was a man who didn't know how to appreciate love when he was watching it on the screen, so probably seeing combined love and music scenes were not to his liking.

He grumbled twenty minutes of film, choosing to direct his attention to Kotoko, who frowned when his mother screamed in excitement every time the characters began to sing.

You could tell she didn't like being interrupted when she saw a new movie for her. However, much to his regret, he couldn't satisfy the desire to approach her. To approach and put his arm on top of her.

He sighed again, overwhelmed, lowering his head in decay, feeling the tips of his fingers tremble and prickle in longing to feel her close to him, even if it was in his own imagination, that nothing! No matter how he saw her, or how much he wanted her, what he craved so much was less than three meters away and he couldn't touch her.

He regretted the fact that he was a pathetic loser, watching a seventies movie at home on a Friday afternoon in the company of his nosy mother, his quiet brother and his "beloved" who was not yet his beloved.

Suddenly, his mother rose suddenly.

"Oba-sama?" Kotoko asked, taken by surprise. Yuuki, made the same gesture, approaching her stealthily; this to Naoki was almost intolerable, almost…

His mother began to sing the song of "Summer nights", as a dreamy teenager would.

Kotoko made a gesture of surprise, spreading her eyes wide and her mouth made her small; Yuuki, hit Kotoko, placing a hand on her arm, incredulous at his mother's performance. Instead, Naoki looked at that scene as a disgrace. His younger brother touching his "beloved" in front of his nose? Unforgivable!

"This was one of my favorites!" His mother screamed excitedly.

Naoki noticed that Yuuki whispered something to Kotoko in her ear and then laughed at it, and then she said something back in his ear and he just laughed.

It bothered him that there was so much trust among them, which was not in abundance with him.

They whispered again and this time they laughed out loud, Yuuki leaning on Kotoko's shoulder and she reloading her chin over her head. They seemed to have a good time.

He truly hated not being able to achieve what his brother could achieve.

* * *

At the end of the movie, between Kotoko and Yuuki the popcorn was over. His mother was responsible for cleaning the things he brought to see the function, however, they left some time to have the opportunity to see any of the following films that were left over. In that, Naoki decided not to let the opportunity pass him, went to the sofa where Kotoko and his younger brother talked happily.

He sat down, showing indifference in his posture.

Fortunately, Kotoko was the first to notice his presence.

"Ah." She turned to see him. "Naoki-kun, were you coming to join our conversation?" She said questioningly.

Yuuki leaned out behind Kotoko's arm, eyeing him warily.

What was between them two?

Before nodding, Yuuki interrupted:

"Onee-chan" He said to her, pulling her from the polo shirt. "It's between the two of us" he warned sternly, putting his firm eyes on the hazelnut eyes of Kotoko, who looked at him scrupulously. "Don't say anything to Onii-chan"

Wait! Onee-chan? Since when did Yuuki say Onee-chan to Kotoko?

He couldn't hide his discomfort, frowning.

"Well, it seems reasonable to me" She concluded with a nod, then focused her attention on Naoki. "Naoki-kun, I'm sorry, but we can't talk to you about this issue" She said trying to sound reasonable, although it was an irritating fact to Naoki.

"Yes" Said his younger brother, looking arrogant. "It's not something I can talk about with you, Onii-chan"

"Why?" He asked annoyed.

They both looked at each other absorbed in their own subject, and he pointed out as a mental note that he should not seem very presumptuous, since despite feeling bad for his feelings, facing his younger brother would not lead to a favorable outcome.

In turn, it would make him look like the bad guy in history, and that was clearly not his main purpose.

He saw that an agreement arose between Kotoko and Yuuki, of which there were apparently no objections from both of them. They nodded and turned their eyes to him.

Kotoko was the first to speak:

"I am trying to help Yuuki-kun with an important matter he has in school, if we get in the way it will stop being secret"

"That's right" Yuuki nodded firmly. "I told Onee-chan that I couldn't tell someone outside this about the matter." He frowned, reflecting in his eyes a stubborn determination. "Besides, it's not something you can help me with, Onii-chan."

"We don't exclude you from the other talk topics" Kotoko replied, waving her hands in denial. "But what we were discussing is something personal from Yuuki-kun and asked me to please say nothing"

Irritated, with no other option but to agreed.

Although he would agreed for now.

Naoki was forced to nod, stiff.

His heart skipped wild as soon as Kotoko's hopeful smile appeared reflected in his childish face, glad to see him agree and respect his complicity with his younger brother.

He admitted feeling excluded from such a situation, but not for that reason, he should lower his guard with Yuuki, since if his brother was his age or a little more, he would have been Kotoko's boyfriend without hesitation.

Naoki was aware that Yuuki would be much better prospect to be Kotoko's boyfriend than he, despite being of the same blood, Yuuki had better qualities and fewer defects than him. Of that, there was no doubt.

"That's great!" Kotoko said, raising her voice, cheerful. "But we can talk, Naoki-kun, of anything else" She assured with her thumb.

"Yes, that's fine" He snapped, directing a twisted look at Yuuki, who, in turn, watched him bewildered by his behavior.

"I wanted to ask you for help with something." Kotoko burst into the play of looks that the Irie brothers kept in front of their noses. Naoki, taken by surprise, while feeling moved by his sudden action, looked at her with satisfaction.

"What is it?"

"I have difficulty doing my homework" She commented, pouting. "My papers and subject notes got together and I don't know how to order them." She shrugged, sighing overwhelmed. "Do you think you can help me?" She looked up hopefully.

That woman had no knowledge of his emotions, because his cheeks lit coming to life on his expressionless face, and his eyes lit up in love, love for her. And undoubtedly it spread rapidly to his hard and cold heart that always melted when she laid her eyes on his, waiting for some response from him, which led to a slight nod, embarrassing him unimpressive behavior in relation to the love he felt for her.

"Yes." His voice was rough.

"Oh! That's great" she smiled, clapping her hands. "Thank you very much, Naoki-kun, you're the best!" She exclaimed gratefully.

"I could help better" Interrupted his brother, causing him a disturbing sensation.

"What?" She turned to Yuuki, questioningly. "What did you say? Help me better?" He nodded petulantly.

"Yes, this is what I offer after your help during these days." He gave a good-natured smile, perpetuating a challenging look towards Naoki, who did not flinch to return it with greater intensity, unwilling to be defeated. "Also, I know better study techniques than Onii-chan"

"Oh, really?" She spoke surprised.

"Of course" Yuuki agreed modestly. "I am younger, so it's easy for me to know new study techniques, even more effective than what Onii-chan has taught you so far"

"But I have a higher IQ" Naoki boasted, sounding hostile. "And photographic memory, I can't forget the things I see and hear once."

"Maybe you have that quality," Yuuki continued. "But, I include I can help a Baka like her, even though I'm still in primary school." He raised an eyebrow, chuckling.

"Sorry to interrupt," Kotoko intervened, grinding her teeth uncomfortably. "But, I already adjusted to the way of working with Naoki-kun "

He, moved, smiled victoriously, crossing his arms at the disgust expressed by his brother, making a face and the gesture twisted.

Take that one, Yuuki, he told himself.

"If you don't mind, Naoki-kun," she added, making up for the meeting between the two brothers, giving her a well-meaning smile.

"Not at all." It was his answer.

"Seriously?"

"It doesn't bother me to help you." He looked at her sideways.

The discussion was over there.


	28. My insecurities having you close

He saw her and he couldn't help to think: _Who is the boy she likes?_

Who will have won Kotoko's heart?

Surely, it wasn't him, although everything indicated that perhaps she had him in the spotlight as an ideal candidate, however, he would not let the man who Kotoko liked take away his desires to conquer her, also he will remain firm in his goal.

Nothing and no one would take away Kotoko's heart. Never.

"Onee-chan," Yuuki spoke to Kotoko in a sign of complicity.

"What's wrong, Yuuki-kun?" Kotoko crouched down to listen.

Naoki saw them whisper, then laugh heartily, putting their hands behind their mouths. They looked very animated, detail that bothered him furtively, until he said it was a frugal sensation.

A squeeze emerged in the pit of the stomach, curling up like a vine.

"Do you think if we watch the next movie?" Kotoko asked Yuuki with some emotion present in his voice.

Yuuki nodded.

"Which of the two?" She took both films from her backpack, and showed them at shoulder height for the two brothers to see.

The films were: "The nightmare before Christmas" and "The Hunchback of Notredame". A somewhat strange contrast, since they were two films of different genres, but despite that, Kotoko seemed to care.

"I say let's see the first one, Kotoko suggested, laughing nervously. "Because the second is strong for Yuuki, even for children"

"So what did you bring it for?" Naoki inquired.

"Because Yuuki-kun asked me for it" Kotoko replied obviously.

"Eh…" Yuuki blushed from the cheeks, hiding behind Kotoko's shoulder, where Naoki could see him from the corner of his eye, giving him a spraying look. How does his brother dare to touch Kotoko that way?

"Oh right" Kotoko snapped hurriedly. "Let's continue with the movie afternoon." A nervous giggle escaped and she stood up to put on the movie "The nightmare before Christmas."

"Is something between your hands?" Naoki straightened to whisper that phrase to Yuuki.

"What?" Yuuki paled in a matter of seconds, in which he babbled under his breath. "No, not at all." He forced a light smile. This left Naoki zero convinced by what was going on between his brother and Kotoko, and causing him pleasure was far from being a good feeling.

"Is everything alright?" Kotoko asked, glancing at them smilingly. Both nodded detached from all conversation. "By the way, I almost lost my bicycle" Che commented.

"What about that?" Yuuki asked, surprised.

"I don't know" She replied, putting a finger under her chin, nodding. "It was very strange, because the brake didn't work when I tried to stop at the top of the street, and I went straight ahead." She made a sign to move forward with her right hand. "The cars brushed by me." She moved her body in an air to dodge. "Until I was about to crash into a tree, I threw myself into the cement with everything and the bicycle, thus crushing it in my abdomen; It was amazing!" She exclaimed effusively.

"How can you say it's amazing?" Yuuki asked presumptuously.

"Because something of that magnitude had never happened to me." She replied with bulging eyes. "At first I thought my bike was in perfect condition, but I saw that it wasn't like that, because of what happened with it."

Naoki didn't know whether to feel good because nothing happened to her, or worried about her well-being. Anyway, everything that was related to Kotoko caused him extreme concern, without a doubt.

"Do you think it's just for that?" Yuuki questioned, still interested in the subject. "I mean that if you think they manipulated the bicycle so you wouldn't participate in the contest"

"It's the assumption I came to" Kotoko snorted, opening her arms. "I think it's that way, because they've been tagging me for having first place in the beauty pageant vote."

Naoki felt discomfort at the thought of that, as if an oppression in his chest would subject her to an object of torture.

He hated knowing that they hurt Kotoko, while he was close to her.

"First place, you?" Yuuki inquired, embarrassed.

"Don't underestimate me, Yuuki-kun." Kotoko stuck out her tongue. "I have my methods of making things work" She presumed, crossing her arms.

"Won't you tell me?" He insisted, pouting. Kotoko shook his head, pretending indignation. "Don't be mean!" He grumbled, offended.

"It's a secret." She scoffed, shaking her head.

Yuuki snorted and groaned in anger, crossing his arms like a scolded child.

Naoki's rage was short-lived, since the movie began and the three remained silent, listening in the distance to the sounds of his mother cooking something in the kitchen.

* * *

When the movie was over, Kotoko jumped up, stretching her arms alluding to wanting to touch the ceiling. Naoki, on the other hand, did not pay attention to anything about the movie because he was watching Kotoko as a stalker out of the corner of his eye, delighting in her facial expressions and gestures with each scene, and watching her sing the songs the movie had.

There was no end to his feelings because they kept growing, they kept moving and flowing to an inaccurate point.

"I should have brought Rocky" Kotoko commented, frowning.

"We saw that one," Yuuki grumbled.

"We haven't seen the others" Kotoko replied, making a stubborn gesture. "We only saw the first one"

"There is more?" Yuuki asked with wide eyes.

Kotoko nodded securely.

"What are those movies?" Naoki intervened, confused.

Their eyes fell on him in disbelief.

"Huh?" Kotoko issued disoriented.

"Haven't you seen them, Onii-chan?" His mother appeared with a tray of cookies, in the same gesture as Yuuki.

So wonderful was that movie? He was baffled by such an assumption.

He only shook his head slightly.

"Don't talk to me, Naoki-kun," Kotoko said, bowing her head in disappointment.

"What?" He exteriorized, suppressing his fear.

Had he made Kotoko angry at his stupidity?

"You should see it at least once in your life," Yuuki scolded him, outraged, ignoring him. "How could you not have seen it!" He refuted, clenching his lips.

"Excuse me?" He said offended.

"Onii-chan, it's the first time I want to ask you to leave the house" Said his mother in grave disdain.

"Mother!" Naoki sighed, taken by surprise.

"Enough!" Kotoko burst in, arms outstretched. "Don't treat Naoki-kun badly, I'll show him the movie later and that's how we can save our disappointment."

Save our disappointment? Then, he had disappointed Kotoko…he felt an uncomfortable pain in his chest, like sharp pangs on the surface of his heart.

He had never heard Kotoko said that she was disappointed in him.

"I think it's a good option," Yuuki retorted, changing his annoying expression to a serious one. "Onee-chan, can we do something else? I don't want to watch more movies on TV anymore." He looked at Kotoko expectorant.

Naoki hated to see that scene in front of him, and in passing with the constant presence of his mother directing her sharp eyes before them, as if she were a hawk.

That woman was an impertinent fantasy.

"Hm." Kotoko put a hand behind her neck, frowning and moving her eyes to the floor. She was thinking.

Suddenly, Naoki was invaded by a sense of insecurity running down the spine in a tumult of thoughts full of uncertainty and fear, but above all anguish.

He didn't know that dismal feeling in his body, it was as if he had a crack in his heart, and with it came the feeling of disappointment.

"What do you think if we watch music videos?" She suggested expressively.

"Yes" Yuuki nodded, pleased.

In that, Kotoko put music videos of Guns N Roses, where she expressed with joy the wonder that those videos were and the way they were recorded with so much professionalism. She kept telling them how great her taste was when she saw good music videos in front of them; Naoki, he listened to her as stupid because of the great feeling he felt for her, recording every thousandth of what came out of Kotoko's mouth as if it were a mantra.

"I like that one" She said, kicking with emotion.

"You like all of them!" Yuuki claimed, making a face.

"Yes." She replied laughing.

How beautiful she was when she didn't realize she was, when Naoki looked at her with admiration and affection, with the purest intention of loving her.

He felt so pathetic having her so close to him, but he couldn't do anything about it. Absolutely nothing, more than looking at it with some distance and settle for that.

How pathetic he could be feeling insecure to show his feelings.

The words failed to describe how pathetic his state was at that time.


	29. The goodnight kiss

"Kotoko-chan" His mother spoke, after a while watching about fifteen music videos at a stretch.

"Yes?" She looked up, looking for another video with television control.

"Will you sleep with us?" She asked with her mouth open with emotion.

"No" Kotoko blinked, denying it. "I must go to my apartment in a little while, because tomorrow I have classes."

His mother's disappointment was quite noticeable, especially in her factions. For Naoki, that was very dramatic on his mother's side.

"Don't worry, Oba-sama" Kotoko dissuaded affirmatively. "There is very little time left for the contest and if I win, I will share the prize with you." She raised her fists in a sign of strength, accompanied by a buying smile.

"Really?" His mother said in a shriek.

"Of course" Kotoko said, winking. "I'll take you to the hot springs."

"Wow!" Yuuki exclaimed in surprise.

"Yes!" His mother jumped in stunning emotion. "I could use a good bath in the hot springs, it helps a lot to make the skin sparkle and shine." His mother squeaked cheerfully. "What a thrill!"

Naoki saw that Kotoko smiled in pleasure, but he couldn't help but see that she yawned and rubbed her eyes so as not to fall asleep; to him, such a detail was cute.

"When is the contest?" Asked his mother, still jumping in joy.

"In two weeks" Kotoko replied, rubbing her hands. She seemed to be cold, and apparently no one noticed it.

"Won't you tell us what you are going to do?" His mother wanted to know.

"It's secret" Kotoko said mockingly.

"Ay! Kotoko-chan" His mother complained, pouting. "Why don't you tell us?"

"I'd rather surprise you" She said simply.

* * *

After eight o'clock, the four had dinner in the dining room, delighting in the delicious food their mother prepared for Kotoko.

Naoki knew how much Kotoko liked his mother's food, just as she knew she was a food-eating machine when she was very hungry, and that day she was very hungry.

"I missed your food a lot, Oba-sama" Kotoko commented earnestly.

"Eat everything you want, Kotoko-chan" His mother offered, delighted. "I prepared all this for you."

"Thank you very much." She smiled gladly. "I really appreciate it."

"Do you eat cardboard food?" Yuuki sneered sarcastically. As Kotoko looked at him to answer, his mother hit him on the head, scolding him instantly.

"Don't tell Kotoko-chan that!" His mother warned.

"My food is not cardboard" Kotoko admitted, with a blank gesture. "Why would you believe that?"

"Forget it" Yuuki muttered reluctantly.

"Okay." And Kotoko kept eating as if nothing could affect her calm.

* * *

When nine o'clock struck, Naoki went up to put on pajamas, just like his brother, leaving Kotoko to wait for them in the living room.

He was not comfortable knowing that she would have to go alone to her apartment at that time; Besides, she lived alone.

He was intrigued to know that Kotoko was returning home, without anyone greeting her or receiving the soft smell of food in preparation from the kitchen.

It was obvious that he missed her, that he wanted them to live together as before, or that things would happen differently, but since he was already used to destiny hating him, he was satisfied with the few times he saw her, and more when he had her in the comforts of his home.

The only inconvenience he found were his mother's interference, but even there. Beyond that, there was no other inconvenience that got in his way when it came to Kotoko.

"Onii-chan" His brother called him.

"Yes?" He peered through the corner of his eye, finishing putting on his winter pajamas.

"You like that Baka, right?" He asked curiously.

Naoki froze, coughing about the matter so suddenly that his brother decided that his curiosity was the impetus for such matters as those.

"Excuse me?" He said offended.

"Just wondering." He excused himself, pretending disinterest.

"Why do you think I like Kotoko?" He questioned, feeling the palpitations emerge from his chest in total disaster.

"For the way you look at her" He replied, eyeing him.

The way he looks at her? And how does he look at her?

Naoki was unaware of such acts concerning his behavior, so he must deny it. He would not say his feelings because first he must tell them to Kotoko.

She must be the first person to receive his confession of love, deed and right.

No laps and no excuses.

A confession of love made by a true man.

Well, although he was, indeed, a man, but not one hundred percent for his cowardice for love, but beyond that, he was a total feat.

"And how do I look at her if I can know?" He inquired indifferently.

"With intentions of loving her" Yuuki told him obviously. "It's too obvious that you love her, Onii-chan."

"I don't love her" He lied, feeling that a lump in his throat cemented when he said those wrong words. He denied his feelings.

His brother looked at him suspiciously, as if he had believed absolutely nothing of what he said, responding with a slight nod:

"Whatever"

The discussion was there, floating in the air.

"Onii-chan!" His mother yelled at him from the first floor. "Onii-chan, come here!"

"I'm coming" He replied the same way.

When he got down he noticed that his mother was in a robe and used her hair curlers; she flexed her right foot on the living room rug, arms crossed.

"What do you want?" He inquired lazily.

"Kotoko-chan fell asleep." She let him know, watching him with some skill.

"What do you want me to do?" He snorted lasciviously.

"At least put a blanket on her." She opened her arms in the air in indignation. "Don't you see it's cold and she can get sick? Onii-chan, you're really not interested in Kotoko-chan in the slightest" She claimed squeaking. "It's a shame to have such a child" She put her hand on her forehead in drama.

Naoki rolled his eyes, enraged.

What arguments did his mother use to accuse him in such an outrageous way?

"Good evening, mother" He said raising an eyebrow, staring at her angrily.

His mother saw him stunned.

"Onii-chan!" She put a hand to her chest in surprise.

"Good evening" He said bluntly. "I'll take care of the rest."

His mother climbed into his room, stomping down the stairs, muttering phrases that he didn't bother to listen, since his attention was directed to Kotoko, who was asleep on the floor with her head resting on the sofa.

He felt emotion realizing that she had fallen asleep at his house.

He went for a blanket from the closet where they kept the entrance shoes. He covered her with the blanket, enduring the temptation not to run his fingers over her hair that hung with the intensity in which his spirit rocked at her mercy.

He noticed everywhere that no one would observe him, considering that he was completely alone from his mother's imprudence and questions from his brother, he leaned in front of her, and took her in his arms knowing she felt light in his arms.

He placed her carefully on the sofa where she used to sit when she lived with them, and covered her all over again with the blanket, making sure that the cold didn't enter anywhere.

_You always look perfect_, he thought as he looked at her.

He decided not to repress himself anymore and lowered his semi-open hand, going through her hair, where his fingers intermingled with the silky and smooth texture of her hair.

He felt her so soft and warm.

Naoki smiled in love, rising in impulse, and planted a sweet kiss on Kotoko's forehead, whispering in her ear:

"I like you"

He raised his hand over her rosy cheeks, touched them a little, delineating her soft cheekbones, her closed eyes, her well drawn eyebrows, her small nose, until he stood on her semi-open lips.

He dared to kiss her cheek, closing his eyelids tightly, inhaling the scent of Kotoko, bewitched and drunk with her fragrance that mixed with his feelings.

He approached her ear, whispering again:

"I like you very much, Kotoko" He said softly.

And so, he went to his room, feeling the heat of his hand vibrating and stabbing pleasant sensations, leaving him in a lax state.

He had given her a goodnight kiss.


	30. Who will win?

Two weeks had flown by inertia for the genius, who, frugally awaited the arrival of Miss Tonan's contest, and much to his disgust, his family would go to see Kotoko compete for the first place.

Why? Who knows, but most likely they did it to annoy him, according to him, even if they were to support Kotoko in the contest.

He would go to see her to support her, of course, the other students of the different faculties would also go, since it was a highly anticipated event for male students, who were the ones who voted with more anticipation and desire than women.

Entering the auditorium of the university, he found Kin-chan in the front row with a sign in support of Kotoko, next to him were Kotoko's friends from the basketball team, as well as their respective signs in support of her; when he saw Kin-chan, he swallowed saliva harsh and went to another part of the auditorium so as not to have the chance to hit him.

He ended up taking a seat in the middle of the audience in the corner seat, to get out of there as soon as possible when the event was over; He rubbed his fingers, a little nervous about Kotoko's performance, hoping that yes, indeed, she would win.

He had some doubt, since Matsumoto also participated, and was in the number two position in terms of voting.

_I wish and Kotoko win_, he thought.

At that moment, the lights went out and the beauty contest of Tonan began.

The host, a third year student of the law degree, came out with a lot of charisma and good attitude in relation to the protocols that he had to carry out in order for the contest to continue in a timely manner.

The public applauded as soon as he was appointing each of the contestants, who were around fifteen who were chosen for the final tie.

The contest would be divided into two stages: The first one consisted of the physical one (the girl had to demonstrate her best physical attributes, through an elegant and comfortable attire to be able to walk on the stage), and the second in the talent (the girl showed her talent before the public, notifying in advance what they would do on stage, in case of being something extreme).

"The contestants will go one by one" The host announced with broad charisma, explaining his arms in unison. The applause rang and gave rise to the host, beginning with his task of introducing each of the contestants.

When he named Kotoko, there was a roar from the public and the applause sounded louder than with the other participants; Kotoko walked out in Adidas colored blue pants with a high ponytail, letting her hair slide down her waist.

Naoki applauded, in trance to her presence on stage.

"Now that we have all the contestants" Said the host, walking from one end to the other on stage. "We will pass a video on what they are getting ready for the first phase of the contest" In that the girls left one by one, as they had been named, being Kotoko the last participant.

The screen was lowered and they captured a video of the daily life of the participants, where the girl that Kotoko mentioned that time in the fast-food Japanese festival that was in the circus appeared; then, the girls that Kotoko had told Kin-chan in great detail came out, even though Kin-chan didn't pay much attention to him by preparing Okonomiyaki at the time, but he had the decency to memorize all the words that They came from the mouth of Kotoko.

When Matsumoto came out in the video, she taught that she practiced tennis and commented in the video excellently about her past tennis tournaments in which she participated and subsequently won; as well as, she commented that she had all the intentions of winning the contest because she deserved it for being so dedicated in studies and being endowed with a good female figure and natural beauty.

Naoki found her approach in the video embarrassing to the people who voted for her, and she must have been humble and grateful to participate, not to be pretty; That's why he rolled his eyes in annoyance, shaking his head at the video.

Since Kotoko was the last participant, her video appeared at the end, so she showed her basketball training with her teammates, also her love for the film, and for her friends and family. To Naoki's surprise, she spoke, saying that she was happy to have been nominated as a contestant and that she had the ability to win first place because of her effort and dedication to overcome herself, and ended up with one of those dangerous smiles she was running. She who reflected the warmth and sweetness that shaped her warm personality.

Of course, most men cheered and shouted for her; it was clear that they supported her for being humble and kind.

The video ended and the host came back to the front with the microphone in hand.

"We will begin the first phase!" He announced enthusiastically; and so on, the contestants were passing with stunning dresses, fine fabrics, raised and cuddly hairstyles, makeup for others, and elegance.

Not one was attractive to Naoki. Not even one. Not even Matsumoto who was very pretty and attractive with her pink dress and contoured curls.

"And finally" Said the host, with the same enthusiasm. "The fifteenth participant, Aihara Kotoko" He extended his hand, indicating at the other end of the stage, the roar of applause resurfaced with infusion when he saw Kotoko leave with some shyness mixed with a pure smile.

Naoki's heart stopped when he saw her in a black strapless dress with glitter around the elongated skirt, knee-high boots of the same color as the dress, and with her hair, she wore her hair loose in well-formed curls that fell slightly to the waist, making the effect that they were floating.

The sighs of emotion contained by the boys were heard, and some shrieks that he knew came from his mother, there was no doubt that she was surely filming her with great pride to see Kotoko for the first time in a dress.

For Naoki, words could not do justice to how cute Kotoko looked in a dress, with her curls, with her smile.

That image was recorded in his memory in an instant, feeling that the world was stopping shortly, and instead of advancing that state of pause he bent to stay there without leaving.

* * *

A few minutes passed before the host said they could take a break in what was set for the stage for the second phase, where the fifteen contestants would participate in demonstrating their talent to the public.

Naoki decided to remain seated in the seat, in case if he were gotten to raise someone else would take his place, and that would be catastrophic.

When it was time for the second phase, the first girl to pass was one of the law school of the 2nd year, who sang Madonna's "Material Girl" and imitated the original video; Naoki recalled that Kotoko once put that video in the house and said it would be great to see an imitation of that video in person.

Most likely, Kotoko gave the idea to that girl.

Another girl who caught Naoki's attention was the circus girl who appeared in the middle of the contestants, juggling and very agile pirouettes on stage, taking several applause from the audience.

"How good she does that" Said an unmistakable voice at his side, instantly frightening him. He turned to see her.

"Kotoko, what are you doing here?" He asked without hiding his astonishment. What was she doing there by his side, when she should be preparing to participate?

"Satomi isn't coming yet" She replied with her hands on her waist in disinterest, nodding her head slightly. "And Ryo, who knows where he went?" She made a funny face. Naoki looked at her better and saw that her hair was loose with curls, but she wore her blue Adidas pants.

"But, it is a little longer for you to pass" He said. "You shouldn't be here."

"I know" She said casually. "But I wanted to come see how the others looked from the viewer's point of view." She crossed her arms, separating her feet from the floor. "Besides, I saw that you came to see the contest, so I wanted to come to greet you."

He blushed, grateful that it was dark enough not to be noticeable in Kotoko's eyes.

"Well, you already greeted me" He replied hurriedly. "Kotoko, go get ready for the contest, then you ask my mother to pass you the recordings of the contestants"

"I don't think Oba-sama would records the others" She laughed.

"Stop wasting your time here." He scolded her, trying to convince her to get ready to win the contest.

As soon as Kotoko was going to tell him something about it, he saw Satomi appear behind her shoulder and jerked her in the ear.

"What are you doing here wasting your time, Kotoko?" He heard her hissing in scolding.

"I came to see the contestants" She explained, in pain.

"You have to get ready!" Satomi scolded her severely. "Ryo is an idiot for neglecting you like that."

"But" She tried to explain, but Satomi pulled her from the ear to the back of the stage, listening to Kotoko's moans being pulled that way.

Naoki laughed sideways.


	31. The last song

_"__I have nothing left and all I feel is this cruel wanting"_

.

.

.

.

Matsumoto passed to the center, demonstrating her intellectual abilities in front of a green board.

Some of the audience seemed bored with such a talent show, because they wanted entertainment, Naoki just wanted to see Kotoko.

The world could not work in unison to please all the men in the room.

When Matsumoto finished there was less applause than in the first phase where he took the baton of applause, and perhaps by taking that course to show his intelligence he lost some points for the final vote.

As soon as she withdrew somewhat indignant at the little public reception with her, the host appeared dispelling the tension formed by Matsumoto, saying:

"I think the last contestant will bring you an amazing surprise" He said enthusiastically. "Please wait a bit so we can set the stage according to what she will show us"

The curtain closed and the suspense soon accumulated among the public, but suddenly it was removed because the curtains of the curtain opened and the host announced:

"Now give a warm applause to our last participant." After a brief pause, he said: "Aihara Kotoko!"

The applause arose, and the stage turned dark, a mysterious black who invaded the vision.

The band members slowly came out and took possession of their respective instruments, accommodating themselves in their intended area and forming part of the stage as a whole.

Kotoko appeared walking from the curtain at a short pace, wearing her loose curly hair, a short-sleeved black blouse glued to the body, also seating her feminine form, a black skirt glued to the body four fingers above the knee, black stockings that showed the color of her skin, and black boots.

Again, she used the color black.

Suddenly, she stood with the microphone in front of her mouth, so that she would not battle to use it.

The silence was sudden, but not uncomfortable.

She turned to see the members of the band and gave them a sign that they could begin, emphasizing on her hand that it was the one that made the signal.

The piano was the first thing that sounded playing the song of "Lost in Paradise" by Evanescence, pressing the chords with subtlety and forcefulness, but the voice of Kotoko when beginning to sing was what caused the difference between the previous songs of some of the participants than hers, because it was soft, melodious and intense.

The cello accompanied the piano, where Kotoko began to grab strength in her voice and her hands clung to the microphone, while her hair rocked with the synergy with which her head moved to the rhythm of the lyrics.

When the whole band joined, the stage was lit by small bursts of purple that intercalated with each other in a faded atmosphere that linked a gloomy place that contained a deep sadness and a feeling of immeasurable loneliness.

If Kotoko accomplished its mission? Of course, there was no doubt for Naoki, who, in turn, contemplated her with longing, quieting inside her the feeling of happiness for having the opportunity to see her in a strong and solemn performance. Seeing the girl he liked on a unique occasion, reflected with him the feeling that gradually grew and grew, and would not stop growing.

Kotoko sang with a lot of feeling, putting her hand on the microphone and the other on the stick that was holding that device.

When he saw her get into the song the most, it was on the bridge, where she seemed to be about to cry, for her eyes became teary and her voice rose, transmitting all the feeling tones centered on her voice.

Part of her singing, of her intense preparation, of her determination to be better, of her endless dedication to things was reflected in her presentation, in all her grace to sing and in all her splendid talent.

It was a direct ticket to appreciate and admire Kotoko more and more.

If he already admired her since she entered the fifty best in high school, now the meaning of her admiration was greater and she clung to her sensation, since it was very pleasant to be inspired to be better.

At the end of the song, Kotoko expressed pain and loneliness, suffering and sadness, passion and love, all focused on her gaze.

"Alone and lost in paradise"

It was how the song ended, in a faint silence that solemnly intoxicated the stage, bringing a wave of applause from the audience, who went crazy with his presentation.

They asked for another song, another outcome equal to the previous one to relive it.

The host came to calm the public, carrying charisma and good enthusiasm to move the masses in a couple of simple words.

"Calm down, please" He asked willingly, reassuring them with his hand. "The judges will barely make the deliberation to determine who will be the winner of Miss Tonan's number 91 contest!" He exclaimed the latter, infecting the public with desire.

Naoki just hoped Kotoko won the contest.

* * *

He had to wait twenty minutes for the curtain to open, giving way to the fifteen contestants in a position of firm, smiling and dazzling as they had shown from the beginning.

Naoki meditated before that that the song Kotoko sang he had not heard from her, and his curiosity sprang up in a waste of time. Some things were not clear to him, and it always happened when Kotoko was involved, that however she lived according to her beliefs, and yet he was lost when she evolved or took a step forward, leaving him behind.

He didn't like the feeling of being left behind, in a way, abandoned by the fullness that Kotoko could reach on her own.

He didn't do much to be part of a breakthrough, or to help her see her faults in something, whatever it was, rather the situation was reversed, that is, Kotoko was the one who shone her faults and let them know to the. In short, Kotoko was the one who had motivated him to change his cold personality to a better one, perhaps not changing everything for those around him, but bringing about a good change in him.

He let himself be overcome by any triviality that time without mercy threw straight into his face, but he also let all the opportunities that he himself had in his nostrils pass, and he refused everything that the universe placed in front of him.

Anything discarded, for lack of value, or rather, for mere cowardice on his part.

"We have a winner!" The host roared in excitement, pulling him out of his thoughts. His attention was placed on that important message. He rubbed his fingers, nervous to know who would win the contest. The audience cheered euphorically. "And the winner is ..." There was a silence almost impossible to remain calm, whose relevance would be to wait anxiously for the result. "The winner is ..." He repeated emphatically, causing others to shout impatiently, some standing up from their seats and others trampling the floor. "Calm down, I'll tell you now." He pulled out a white envelope, and opened the contents, taking out a white bibliographic sheet paper. "Contest winner Miss Tonan number 91 is ..." He said enthusiastically. "Aihara Kotoko!" He revealed in an ecstatic shout.

A wave of applause and shouts in euphoria resurfaced throughout the auditorium, including those of his mother, who shouted in joy for the winner.

Kotoko was in shock, stiff from the impression of being named the winner of the contest. He blinked with bulging eyes.

Naoki joined the applause happy for the result, but more than anything, happy for it, because his great dedication came to fruition.

All her efforts had been worth it until the last moment she presented that powerful song, as was her personality.

The applause continued, and the host gave Kotoko a handshake congratulating her on her achievement, she smiled gratefully.

After a silence was made, the host decided to speak:

"Who will be the lucky one with whom you will share the prize?" Said good-naturedly, giving Kotoko the microphone. She took the microphone.

"Irie Naoki of the engineering faculty" Kotoko announced, chuckling. He froze, felt a sensation fluttering in his stomach of vibrant emotion.

She had chosen him.

All the men turned to see him with envy, to which he replied standing up, heading for the stage with his legs weakening and his hands shaking.

When he arrived, he was crowned as the king of Tonan, and Kotoko was crowned just like him.

"Hey, what do you say?" She whispered happily. "I won."

"I know" He grumbled, proud of her, crossing his arms. "Congratulations for you"

"Thank you." She smiled satisfied.

The contest was finally over.

.

.

.

.

**P.S.** ("Lost in Paradise" by Evanescence)


	32. The walk

Finishing the celebrations on stage, after the constant photographs taken by his mother. Naoki went behind the curtain in search of Kotoko, because he wanted to see her, after having retired to put on his pants.

When he was about to get into the locker room in search of his presence, one hand pulled him back, taking him by the mouth, and the other by the arm. He was frightened of the pull, trying to defend himself, but the force with which he was treated was impressive.

"Sh." It was Kotoko's voice trying to calm him down. "It's me," she whispered.

He removed his hand from his mouth, his heart out.

"What are you doing?" He inquired almost pale with fright.

"Let's get out of here," she said hurriedly. "If we stay here we will never leave"

"Okay," she agreed immediately, moved because Kotoko told him to go with her, instead of telling someone else.

They left behind the scenes, taking advantage of the fact that people were piled up in the dressing rooms and on stage taking pictures.

"Ah, what a relief!" Kotoko sighed, stretching her arms in the air. "I can't believe I won the contest! It feels so strange after I have prepared so much"

"It looks like you wanted it," he said calmly.

She nodded.

"I assume you will return with us after this, won't you?" He asked, hiding his concern for her. Seeing that she observed him in a thoughtful way, he added: "I mean, if you have thought about it, but you can do what you like, Kotoko."

"Oh yes" She nodded, understanding. "If I plan to return with you, all I need is to get the moving boxes, because I haven't bought them to start packing." She chuckled. "I hope not to be an impertinence if I return with you, but I can move to another place with my father."

"No" He snapped in dismay. "You can come" He said awkwardly at his pace. "You will not be an interference if you live with us again."

"Oh, I see" She said, nodding. "I think it's perfect." She winked happily. "By the way, Naoki-kun, would you like to go to eat?"

"What?" He coughed in surprise, not without feeling the racing heartbeat. However, he saw that Kotoko watched him expectantly, so it was tempting to agree. "Yeah right"

"Great!" She applauded, pleased. "Where are we going?" He put a finger under the corner of his lips.

"Wherever you like," he replied, looking at her contemplatively. While we're together, the place doesn't matter, he thought.

"Ramen," she suggested with shining eyes. -How about?-

"Okay," he agreed without thinking.

Obviously, when it came to Kotoko there was no need to think about it.

* * *

"Naoki-kun" Kotoko said, having finished eating Ramen.

"Tell me." He looked up, raising an eyebrow meaning he heard her.

"Whenever I go out with you" She commented with interest. "We're always going to eat or listen to music." She laughed at her words.

"Is something wrong with that?" He questioned a little slyly.

"No" She replied without a joke. "On the contrary, it makes me curious" she replied with her eyes scanning him. "Because my friendships are different, for example my friendship with Ryo revolves around basketball and music, with Nozomi it's the same, with Jinko and Satomi sometimes I don't know how the friendship arose" She laughed at herself, causing him a ravage in the heart that turned violently.

"How is it that Jinko and Satomi became your friends?" He wanted to know, resting his hands on the table, after the waiter picked up his empty plates. In fact, Naoki did not know how it was that Kotoko had such strange friends, being so active and full of vitality as to walk with some female girls who called themselves her best friends. It was a strange thing, which in the long run caused him some intrigue.

"I think it was because Ryo liked Satomi since high school" She replied with a little doubt, placing a finger under her chin. "And I was curious to know why he liked a person different from his personality" She supposed.

"What a strange friendship" He retorted.

"The people who make me curious are the ones I approached first" She admitted, smiling friendly.

"Like me?" He snapped excitedly like an idiot.

"Sure" She smiled rakishly. "In my life I had met someone like you" She pointed out in admiration. "That's why I'm glad we got along, Naoki-kun, I really appreciate it." In it, a blush was visible on her cheeks. The same thing happened with Naoki, she blushed slightly on her cheeks and that color expressed the feeling that silenced her.

"Despite your occurrences and noises" He said sparingly. "I admit that I am very pleased that we get along, Kotoko."

Well, he said encouraging himself in his own way.

Kotoko opened her mouth in amazement, blinking her bell.

"Excellent" She roared in victory. "What are we waiting for?" She stood up from the chair like a spring, startling Naoki.

"What are you doing?"

"We have to pack for the trip" She exclaimed in imminent joy. "I am excited to rest for a few days, don't you Naoki-kun?"

His walk was over like this, with a short meal and a few revelations from Kotoko that gave him hope to continue fighting for his affections.

The road continued to lengthen, but he would still cling to having his love…


	33. The hot springs

The mild climate of the month of March welcomed him warmly, hugging him gently and with great enthusiasm for the trip to the hot springs, where he would spend the next three nights in the company of his family and the Aihara.

Everything would be in sync if he was not involved in his mother's imprudence that took him out of his normal state, and that woman took him out of his boxes.

They were all sitting in Kotoko's father's car, which he used when they moved home; Kotoko's father was driving with her occupying the place of the co-pilot, because she was in charge of playing the music so as not to bore others.

His brother was sitting next to him in the back seats, while his parents were in the middle.

His mother forced Kotoko to put the disc of the film Grease , and although she opposed it at the beginning, he caught her singing some songs far below her breath, in that he took advantage to observe her without interruptions from his father or his brother.

When the Grease movie disc was finalized, Kotoko put on the Guns N Roses "Appetite for Destruction" disc, where the car creaked due to the intensity at which the sound vibrations of the songs were heard in the speakers.

Yuuki began to sing along with Kotoko, who shook her hair from side to side, frightening her father, from whom, she tried to concentrate to handle instead of surrendering to the charms of the rock group that, in Naoki's eyes , he liked.

"Onee-chan" Yuuki told her from his seat.

Kotoko nodded, tilting her head.

"What other records did you bring?"

"Slippery when wet by Bon Jovi" She replied in a sense of freshness.

"Oh! I love that one!" Mr. Aihara said enthusiastically.

"Do I put it on, dad?" Kotoko suggested.

"Sure!"

"I like that one, Onee-chan" Yuuki complemented, in momentum.

As soon as she put it on, the three began to sing since the first song began to play from the car stereo, what Naoki didn't expect was that his own father would join them in singing and the car instead of staying in silence, he was roaring in joy, bringing new noises to the life of the genius, who never saw himself in a position like the one he was experiencing in the vehicle, being just the beginning of his journey.

His brother between songs, offered him some goodies, which he gladly accepted, because such an unusual gesture made by his brother did not see him daily; he supposed it was because his family was influenced by Kotoko's strong presence expanding anywhere.

"How are they all at the back?" Kotoko turned to see them with a smile planted on her face.

"Super good, Kotoko-chan." His mother approved.

"At ease, Kotoko-chan" His father chanted enthusiastically.

"And you, Naoki-kun" She glanced at him, emanating from her pupils the expectation she claimed to have fixed on him. Naoki swallowed, showing indifference.

"Good." He flinched to say modest.

"And you, Yuuki-kun?" She directed her attention to his brother.

"Very good, Onee-chan," He pointed with his thumb up.

"Excellent!" She made a high fist, smiling sideways.

"Daughter" Mr. Aihara turned her so that her sight was on the front of the road. "Don't neglect the front, I need you to read me the map"

"Yes, father" She said, slapping him on the shoulder.

Overall, the road was full of overflowing trees with huge greenish thick canopies, the sea that accompanied such a beautiful view, shone from the horizon with its bluish natural charms and the smell of the sea breeze was to undergo a dream lived in meat and bone.

Similarly, Naoki was in a good mood, thanks to Kotoko winning the contest, they could spend a holiday together, adding that he would have to endure his noisy mother, his nosy younger brother, but outside, there was no harm For good don't come.

Spending a few days accompanied by Kotoko were of imminent happiness.

* * *

Upon arriving at the hot spring, Naoki was the last to get out of the car, since his family immediately got out of the vehicle with the intentions of being given his room, even so that didn't stop him from helping his family with the suitcases, in order to spend extra time next to Kotoko, who stayed in the same way to lower and load the bags, taking advantage of the fact that she was strong enough to load things without spilling sweat in the process.

"How fun we are already on vacation" She said, when they had taken all the bags out of the trunk.

"Yes" He muttered, a little nervous that he could see her in other airs. "Kotoko" He decided to call her, to which she nodded. "I was wondering if you decided to return with us or not"

Kotoko watched him with her mouth half open, staring at him silently.

"What?" He inquired, embarrassed. "Forget it, Kotoko." He turned, but just as he turned around, Kotoko spoke:

"Soon" Was her response, followed by a mischievous giggle. "Don't be impatient"

"Who said I'm impatient?" He grumbled blushing.

"Oh, whatever you say" She scoffed. "You're always right"

"Do you insinuate something, Kotoko?" He dared to ask, fluttering inside.

"No" She replied coolly. "On the contrary, I am happy to be able to be out of my apartment for a few days, at least I have a beautiful view to contemplate and I am in the company of the people I love" This time, else he tilted to see her, with the pretext of taking two bags with him (one was from his parents and the other his own). She was smiling, as if musical notes came out of her ears or something similar.

For him, that made her look funny.

"Well, I don't imply anything either" He grumbled in mock attitude. "In case you ask" He emphasized that phrase, going to the hotel where they would be staying; As soon as he did that, he was followed by Kotoko, who was watching him curiously, carrying two suitcases without problems. "Do your classes go well?" He felt terribly pathetic when asked something like that, in addition to almost always seeing each other, he asked the same thing: If her classes went well.

He could clearly have asked something better than that, like the previous question.

"Of course" She said, hovering. "And yours?"

"Good, as always" He presumed.

"Obviously" She chanted, winking. "If you were born with a prodigious brain" She said with mock amazement, which made her expression graceful. "Unfortunately, I'm not the brightest of the bunch, nor the prettiest of all the girls like Matsumoto is" She paraphrased dramatically. "But, if I'm still here, it's something." He took her performance for granted, making a smile appear on Naoki's lips that he wanted to laugh at how funny Kotoko's performance seemed to him, but he didn't because his nosy mother He had sneaked between them, taking the reins of their coexistence.

He snorted, making a face of indifference in front of his mother, so she could notice, but unfortunately his mother went unnoticed.

Kotoko left in the company of her father, and he in that of his family.

How annoying his vacations in the hot springs would be.

* * *

Arriving at his room, he had to share it with his brother (as expected from the beginning), Kotoko in the company of her father, and his parents together.

He didn't consider his own a misfortune of destiny, or a bad move made by his family, although he did not deny that he was not in a good mood to deal with the others around him, rather than with Kotoko. However, she was not with them when they went to eat at the hotel restaurant, as she went to film the landscapes surrounding the hotel; besides, he was not clear-minded enough to be able to talk openly with her about a subject, although he reiterated that he was not opposed to chatting with her about anything, but a part of him prevented him. A kind of force outside his own absorbed him into that world in which his thoughts collided with each other and joined the dance of words that his mind conjured by inertia.

Nothing was enough to remain pleased with the guidelines that the road threw to him to solve, so as to put another guideline, and so on until he was fed up. It was like covering the sun with one finger.

An unfavorable situation for someone of his mental caliber, but despite being intelligent, he was a man in love, with ample desire to express his love freely and at any time when he could do it.

Being a despotic man did not save him from falling in love.

"Oni-chan," Yuuki spoke with a sidelong face.

"Tell me" He muttered, unpacking his suitcase.

"I'll go find Onee-chan" He notified him with some skill. "Surely she must be lost somewhere out there"

Naoki flinched, slightly opening his blank eyes.

"Will you go alone?" He pointed him.

His brother shook his shoulders, nodding.

"Why don't you leave her alone?" He grumbled, hiding the resentment he carried in relation to his younger brother. Without offending him, his brother wrinkled his eyebrows, looking at him suspiciously.

"Don't be so hard on her, Onii-chan" Yuuki defended. "If you really know her, you will realize that she is a person worth spending time with"

_I know that_, he thought, a vein gushing from his temple.

"I'll go find her" His brother notified, rolling his eyes in his direction.

"Since when do you get along so well with Kotoko?" Without thinking he threw himself to ask, holding his brother out of the room door. The nominee stopped, with his hand suspended in the air, a few inches from the handle.

Yuuki tilted his head toward him, seeing him with wide suspicion present in his pupils.

"Since I discovered she is great" He admitted sincerely. "She is helping me with something of mine, and from there I realized how great she is." Seeing that Naoki said nothing, he turned the handle and left, saying, "Well, if that's all, I'm leaving."

Naoki was absorbed, in the absolute silence that was seizing the room, allowing his brother to go behind Kotoko in front of his nose.

He didn't it think much, he just went to the side of the door and left in search of Kotoko, knowing that perhaps he would find her accompanied by his younger brother and perhaps, he would not have the same attention that his brother received from her .

It was like seeing the sun and not finding the drops that fall from its incandescent rays, or seeing the sky dazzled, blocking its view, likewise, clouding its reasoning.

He sighed deeply, bitter that things didn't usually appear in his life by magic, and without any other remedy, he had to look for her, find her, go after his goal and reach it as it would. The rest did not matter anymore, while its main objective was solved.

He went out through the hollows of the landscape, passing through narrow passages, smelling the gentle breeze that emerged from the sea at some distance, guiding his feet through the pebbles that contrasted the green natural landscape of the forest that suspiciously concealed the treasures of the hot springs.

To be the afternoon, there were not many people outside, since they would surely be enjoying the main purpose of coming there: the hot springs.

There were some hikers in light sportswear, some ladies in casual clothes with mountaineering boots with their thermos of water, one or another young boy running along the trails, and not a trace of Kotoko anywhere.

Who will know where that disastrous girl was.

He climbed to the highest point of the hill, managing to appreciate a spectacular view that was recorded in his memory, since the sun shone with its warm rays the small glitters that decanted and colored the unmistakable blue of the sea and its crashing waves with the rocks creating a clash of forces that spread through the air in unparalleled beauty.

That landscape only increased his desire to want to have Kotoko by her side so she could appreciate the view just like him.

They were just mere wishes… simple wishful dreams.

Hill down, Naoki walked sighing the clean oxygen that the trees possessed with their huge canopies, their elongated and thin branches stretched fragile like clock pendulums that hung rocked in amazing tune.

Naoki passed the small path, passing through some steps that led the way back with stealth and respect for nature.

He heard a few quick steps, meaning that someone was running up the hill, unlike him, what he least expected was that the person running was about Kotoko.

His heart skipped a beat when he saw she was running towards his direction, with the headphones on her ears, with a concentrated gesture; her hair fell stunningly from a ponytail that kept her from blocking her view of the road. She wore cream-colored knee-length sports shorts, a dark honey-colored tank top, and her basketball shoes.

When she was about to pass him by, some boys went through him awkwardly, since they rode their bicycles without taking care of who was passing by.

Kotoko noticed this, and threw herself on the ground, but just then, he took her to him, falling over him, her head landing inertia on his chest and her hands leaning on his forearms with pressure to not move much .

Naoki paralyzed by his action, he caught her firmly in his arms, dropping directly to the soft ground, since the blow didn't hurt when he fell.

Kotoko coughed, apologizing immediately, with an embarrassed face.

"Please forgive me" She said alarmed, bowing her head. "It wasn't my intention to hit you that way."

"Kotoko, that's fine" He said, feeling that his heart was about to burst with the excitement of having her so close to him. In fact, it was the first time he had her so close, locked in his arms, protecting her from the fall.

"Naoki-kun." She mentioned his name in fright. "Good thing I didn't crash into a stranger" She sighed with relief, lowering her shoulders.

"Same thing" He said stiffly, tensing every muscle in his body from the nerves.

Kotoko laughed friendly, standing up, then lending him a hand to help him up. He accepted the gesture, sighing in between. "Thank you"

"It's nothing" She dissuaded with her free hand. "By the way, what were you doing here? Did you take a walk?"

"Something like that" He replied grimly. He wouldn't admit that he was looking for her, because fortunately he found her before his younger brother did.

"I went for a run after recording the landscape a little." She put a hand to her head, adjusting her ponytail. "But, as soon as I did, it made me want to go running on my own, really" She sighed, giddy. "I needed to relax in nature"

He looked at her, still, sighing again.

"Do you mind if I go with you?" He asked, reaching into the pockets of his pants.

"Yes" She smiled kindly. "I don't see why not"

And so they both ran up the hill, even though he was already back, he didn't care about climbing again, since this time he was accompanied by his special person; in addition, he would show Kotoko the beautiful view he saw in the highest part of the hill.

There was no reason not to be grateful for how the situation turned curiously in his favor.


	34. Seventh musical encounter

_"Over the sea, I prefer to follow your footsteps…"_

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Naoki went to the hot springs with Kotoko's father, his father and his brother, while Kotoko had to go in the company of his mother.

Before separating, he saw that Kotoko looked at them with a grimace of consternance, asking for help with her eyes and gesturing humorously the word "help", he laughed sideways, in which Yuuki wished her good luck, and his parents simply winked at them with skill.

Naoki bathed at ease in the water laden with minerals, feeling that his body relaxed after so much tension accumulated by the previous weeks in which he was emotionally worn out by trifles. His body thanked him as soon as he got into the water, and rested without any other reason for not doing so.

_What I needed_, he said convinced that this rest had more than deserved in his vain existence as a man in love.

When he finished the bath, he heard his mother shrieking phrases in relation to Kotoko's toned body. Phrases absurd to his point of view, because they didn't even matter to him with the purpose of enjoying a good bath that not every day he could deliberately arrange. He gritted his teeth, tense at his mother's mundane interference.

Why not just leave him alone even for a single day? One day! Was it too much to ask? Maybe yes, because of the kind of mother he got, he couldn't ask for anything else in return.

He put on the robe they were given in the temple and went for a walk through the dark sea, with the pure intention of breathing the clean air that the waves of the sea deliberately decanted.

At least, he could rest, right? It was supposed to be a short vacation to enjoy in their own way, well, for a while that night there was a chance to escape from the clutches of their mother and get rid of the weight she put on him without her consent.

Once he had arrived at the beach, walking through the soft textured sand, inhaling the greatest amount of air by storing it in his lungs, allowing himself to flow with the rhythm in which the oxygen entered his body and subsequently purified it.

Yes, that was what he needed very urgently.

* * *

He kept moving forward, and stopped when he saw Kotoko sitting near the waves of the sea, hugging her legs, resting her chin on her knees. She looked contemplative, to which he assumed that she, like him, needed such a break.

"Kotoko" He encouraged himself to speak to her.

"Ah, Naoki-kun." She didn't panic with her sudden appearance, on the contrary, she simply shook her shoulders and tilted to see him by chance. "Did you also get away from the others?" He nodded, tensing his shoulders. "Yes, I guessed it" She said, indicating that he could sit next to her, which he immediately accepted. "In fact, sometimes it is better to rest at one's own pace, don't you think?"

"I suppose" He swallowed, smelling her sweet scent radiating the strands of her hair that danced with the sea breeze.

She sighed.

"I like to see the sea in the dark" Kotoko said, clasping her legs to her chest. "It's intriguing, isn't it? As if it didn't exist but you listen to it and if you listen to it well, you realize it's right there in front of you" She pointed out, in a thoughtful tone. "It's similar to the new challenges, at the beginning you don't see its benefit in your life, but when you face them correctly, you can understand their purpose in your existence"

Naoki heard her words, and their importance brought together an irreplaceable meaning in her memory, since they came from Kotoko's mouth, but also, she said something that caught his attention: at first you don't see the benefit in your life, but then once his purpose in his existence… that is how he realized that he was in love with her.

"I didn't bring my walkman to play a song." She snapped, regretting her carelessness.

"What song did you want to play?" He turned to see her, seeing that she pouted. She looked funny when she did that.

"What if I sing it without music?" She suggested, motivated, raising her fists to her face.

"As you like" He looked away, since the intensity with which he was observing him was great, and the blush of his cheeks rose violently.

She took a breath, preparing to sing.

Soda Stereo's song "Pasos" rang through her sweet voice, being subtle to the ears, masterful to his eyes, and loud to his heart.

The remarkable difference that arose between day and night was that the night surrounded them in tranquility, a kind of austere atmosphere that interfered beneath their skin. Naoki felt as if the nebulous constellations flagellated in his retinas, reflecting in them, the kindness with which he had Kototo's company at his side, knowing that he was always behind him; following her wherever she went.

Following her regardless of the distance, or how long it will take to reach her side, in order to continue listening to her voice as she did that night when the two stood contemplating the mysteries of the sea.

Thus, they spent their three days in the hot springs, resting in excess, since Naoki did not specify how the next events would happen in his exhaustive pursuit.

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**P.S. **(Mention of the song "Pasos" from Soda Stereo)


	35. Kotoko's suitor

The hot spring vacation ended so quickly in the blink of an eye, and yet the issues and premises of returning home with the same grogginess that he hated to feel consumed him slowly.

They were like echoes ringing in his ears, saturating him and engulfing him with their impulses, in a fatal numbness.

The house with its heat enveloped him and protected him from all the harmful things coming from outside, contrasting with everything he was forced to deal with in order to have his happiness guaranteed. Overall, you get nothing in life for free, and Naoki knew that better than anyone that the things he sought to obtain would not come to him for free as if by magic.

Despite the fact that his house was warm, there was a cold inside that he couldn't describe, or even put into words, because everything seemed so confusing when he wanted to feel it.

Vague aspirations would be the term in terms of the level of sincerity used on his part…a loneliness that was filled with another loneliness, and the place did not stop growing somewhere in his chest.

He kept his fears to himself, his silence filled him with another silence, and things were falling behind, that is, half-hearted. Making everything clear or leaving everything in nothing, was not something he knew how to do as if it were a reinforcer. In few descriptions, he was a man of few words and several times he would repeat it when the situation required it, or simply when he wanted to avoid an uncomfortable subject. A theme called love.

It tore him to know that he was an idiot, to know that he was completely disoriented in that subject that encompassed his feelings for Kotoko. Feelings that he was feeling, and that with the passage of time he became aware of an entity existing within his body, unable to wriggle out or detach himself from his place, because he encrusted himself with hardness with the intention of never disappearing from his interior.

The earth compressed his actions, limited him to exerting movements freely, affecting his consciousness.

With each silence emitted by his person, the songs that reminded him of Kotoko emerged through the always sunset dawn in which his eyes were opened every morning and with the anticipation in which they were closed every night in which he let himself be carried away by his dreams eternally still.

His vacations ended with those thoughts, but they did not close an end to his jovial existence, but constantly expanded and extended it. They entangled her and shook her, submerged her in a sea of sensations and her background is not the same, on the contrary, her heart kept skipping every time her eyes fell on Kotoko. Every time ... every time.

He returned to school with his head erect, saturated to the point of having to deal with the activities that being a student implied and being close to certain did not mean being one of his qualities.

Fortunately, they would already give him the grades on whether or not he passed the medical exam and if he passed, it meant that he would enter his 2nd year of University in the medical department.

His hands were sweating as a student of such a prestigious career, and just imagining it made his skin crawl with excitement.

He would tell Kotoko when he found out the result, she definitely deserved to be the first to know if his effort was in vain or not.

The fatigue and every thing that haunted him were not enough to stop him or even direct him towards failure, which in any case, would not be a failure, because he claimed success.

* * *

Just as he was passing the university campus, where some trees were located in the passage, he saw Kotoko with her two friends behind her with the face of being out of breath, and in front of Kotoko a boy who he had never seen nearby took possession. to her. What's more, it was the first time he saw him.

He frowned completely out of himself.

Who was the boy who approached Kotoko?

What he could see was that the boy held out his hand to introduce himself and Kotoko looked at him petrified, as if not knowing what to say or how to react to such a presentation.

A pulsation in the palm of his hands made him enter their boxes, although he did not know how it was that his mind ordered him to carry out that action, his precedents did not testify as a bad moment, on the contrary, he approached Kotoko in a promiscuous impulse, taking away a sidelong glance from her who thanked her for his meddling.

"Thanks" She chanted, striding behind her. "I didn't know what to do back there"

"Who was that guy?" He asked scornfully.

"It's Nakagawa Taketo" She replied in some surprise. "I remembered him, but not in that style, he had longer hair before and his complexion was a little thinner" She continued describing him as he used to be before, but that there was something about that boy that he did not give to him a good thorn. "He told me that since high school he was in love with me, and now he still is"

"What?" His voice came out rough. Yet another suitor?

"He asked me to give him a chance" She continued cautiously, catching up with him. "But I'm not sure"

The feeling of joy at knowing his test results went overboard, since now his mind wandered on another matter of a greater nature, that is, of greater importance. How to act if Kotoko has a strong suitor?

"Don't worry" She said, holding up her thumb. "It's not of great importance."

"What is not of great importance?" He asked dryly.

"Give it a try" She specified. "You know I like someone"

"Yes"

"So I will tell him he can be my friend." She nudged him casually. "Don't worry"

"Who said I'm worried?" He complained, shoving both hands into his pockets. Although, she was right again as was the custom, since in fact, he was quite worried about having to deal with another opponent on his way; If, in itself, it was already a nuisance dealing with Ikezawa, adding another suitor to the list implied another difficulty with which he would be envisioned to solve.

"You don't have to say it" She dissuaded with her hand. "I know that inside you, you are worried, even if you deny it"

"Excuse me?" He pretended to be offended.

"Don't listen to me" She opted, changing the topic of the conversation in reference to her intervention. "Why is it that you wanted to talk to me, Naoki-kun?"

"Today they will give me my transfer results" He notified with a hint of piled excitement. Kotoko's eyes widened, and she suddenly started to jump slightly with anxiety.

"Oh, what an intrigue!" She exclaimed, putting both hands on her cheeks.

"It is" He said between his breath, still weighing in his mind about that boy who was looking to have a chance in Kotoko's life, and his chest contracted in full uncertainty, suddenly part of his vision became blurred and that fear he intoxicated his senses with soporific disdain.

What was needed to overcome the obstacles? The answer is very simple: courage. But he did not always have the courage to face the hardships of life, despite being only nineteen years old, everything emotional was difficult. Distinguishing what to do and what to say was not an easy task for everyone, especially for someone like him.

They arrived at the university offices, where they transferred him to another cubicle in the same building so that the school control could give him his results. Kotoko stayed to wait for him in the office at the entrance of the building, leaving him at the expense of what a simple paper would say.

"Irie Naoki, right?" The school control man named, looking at him through his glasses that hung from the bridge of his nose. He nodded. "Well, congratulations on your transfer." He handed him the paper where his results came from, glimpsing from his pupils his excellent grade taken from the transfer exam. "You will enter after the rest because we know that you are a student prodigy and therefore we will see the transfer papers here if you like tomorrow at the same time" He suggested cautiously. "Of course, if you have time to do the transfer process"

"I do have time" He said politely, suppressing the huge smile from ear to ear that threatened to escape his lips.

"Perfect." The school control man took some sheets from his desk, and handed them to him. "They are the requirements to make the transfer and the data sheet comes" He explained what he should fill out and the documents that he would require for said transfer, but the only thing that was going on in his head was the big smile that Kotoko would outline for him. him for his individual triumph. "If you have any questions, my number comes on the requirements sheet, but I don't think it does, but in case you can call me during the day"

"Thank you very much." He bowed his head in thanks and prepared to leave the office.

At least one good thing was happening to him recently, and more because it was an achievement he accomplished on his own.


	36. The celebration of the transfer

_"Of that love, of light music, nothing frees us, nothing else remains"_

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When he got to the main office there was no sign of Kotoko anywhere, the feeling that seized him was devastating.

Suddenly, his cell phone vibrated from his pants pocket, when he took it out, the air left him when he realized that it was Kotoko who was calling him. He didn't hesitate for a moment to answer.

"Kotoko" He said. He heard her sigh in relief.

"Naoki-kun, I'm sorry!" She exclaimed sadly. "They called me from the group, they told me that the grades were already published on the bulletin board, so I'm running there; by the way, how did it go, did you pass or not?"

"I passed" He reported clearly; Shouts of joy rang out from the other end of the phone, making his inner smile grow more.

"Congratulations, Naoki-kun!" She congratulated him. "This deserves to be celebrated"

"It's not for much"

"Yes it is" She stubbornly objected. "It deserves to be celebrated because it is a triumph of your effort, because it is something you want to achieve on your own." She took a breath, apparently she was running at full speed. "Wait for me at the station, I'll see you in twenty minutes"

"Kotoko, I already told you that"

"Rejected!" She denied. "I will celebrate you as you deserve." Before he could say anything about it, she had already hung up on him.

With a discreet smile he went straight to the station forgetting the presence of Taketo Nakagawa who angered him that morning.

* * *

The rays of the March sun dazzled his sight, being penetrating by their intensity, but not bored by the haze it caused in his eyes.

He stopped at the station, not too far, nor too close to where people entered with their passes to go on the subway.

The climate mutated, also changing its cold to a soft heat that relaxed every muscle in his body and his veins expanded in their normal course.

"Naoki-kun!" That unmistakable voice came from a few meters from where he was located. Kotoko's hair fluttered in the wind, her bicycle moving wildly, but it was her smile that captured him the instant he turned to see her.

When she reached him, he dropped the bike and threw himself into her arms, smiling broadly and laughing warmly.

"I'm so proud of you" She hugged him tight.

He froze, without instantly assimilating the sudden display of affection directed only at him and that with effort he returned the embrace with little effort, since he tensed completely and every muscle in his arms faded and his cheeks flushed.

"Very proud of you, Naoki-kun" She said sincerely.

"Thanks" He mumbled.

She released him in an ephemeral movement, watching him with a wide smile showing her teeth.

"What are we waiting for?" She exclaimed. "Let's celebrate"

"Where?" He looked at her, drawn.

"To the Karaoke"

"No, please" He snapped, disturbed, Kotoko pouted, unsatisfied with her answer. "I don't like those things" He grumbled.

"Don't sing if you don't want to." She gave him a push with her hand.

"Kotoko, I told you there is no need to celebrate me" He sighed overwhelmed.

"I won't do that." She wrinkled his nose, taking him by the arm and reluctantly sitting him on the seat of her bicycle. "You come with me." She looked at him challengingly, causing his heart to skip a beat. He swallowed hard and flinched with a slow nod.

What power did Kotoko have over him just by looking at him and facing him with his hazel eyes until he got an answer from him.

* * *

From there on, Kotoko took him in the back seat of his bicycle, pedaling at a medium pace, spending moments on the streets and then returning to the sidewalk in order not to crash into a vehicle that passed on his way.

The path was relaxed, subtle, one might say; Because the sounds of Kotoko's pedaling always end up subjecting him to a sleeping trance, gradually reducing his accumulated tensions and slowly dissipating.

The gentle touch of the wind blowing was warm, the smell of coffee coming from the cafes they left behind pleased him. The tours he made with her were always rhythmic in terms of his state of mind. From being down to good.

However, a question came to Naoki, he turned to see Kotoko's back, which was reflected strongly and far from his contact, despite having her so close.

"Kotoko" He pronounced her name. "Can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead" She said, slowing down the pedaling.

"What did you do when you were in film school?" He asked somewhat curiously. At once he heard a thoughtful sigh from her.

"Go celebrate my achievement" She simplified. "What else could I have done?"

"No, nothing" He snapped, blushing. "I was just curious, it's that"

"Curious or not" She said. "I am doing exactly the same with you, that is, taking you to the Karaoke"

"So you went to karaoke to celebrate?" He said in a questioning tone.

"Yes," she chuckled easily. "Still, you don't have to sing if you don't feel like it, that's what the food is for, they have excellent dishes to eat where you enjoy singing"

"At least I'll eat," he hissed, shaking his head.

"You're already grabbing the scroll, Naoki-kun." He pedaled more eagerly as soon as he said that, running at full speed through the premises of the district in which she had settled, leaving all the monotony behind.

They arrived at Karaoke within an hour of leaving the station, since the road to reach the happy place was long, but one of the calmest and most beautiful that Naoki could see from the back seat of the bicycle.

It did not happen every day that he could have the time to contemplate the wonders of the people who lived in the city of Tokyo, as well as it was not daily that Kotoko took him for a walk as it caused him so much pleasure. She laughed with pleasure at just experiencing and feeling the ride for herself until the blood running through her veins turned to pure warmth.

They asked for some snacks in the classroom that were given only for the two of them. The time he was involved in the classroom passed so quickly that he barely noticed it, since he was diverted from his thoughts by being an idiot watching Kotoko sing a large number of songs from the device; In addition to having it only for him, it was not a scenario that he lived on a daily basis, that is why he made the most of such an experience in front of him.

"I know!" Kotoko suddenly chanted, taking him by surprise.

"What?" He swallowed the sugar cookies he ate.

"Why don't you sing with me?" She suggested delightedly, bringing her face closer to his, causing an aggressive blush in him.

"No." He pulled his face away from hers, disturbed from within. "Sing alone, Kotoko, I already told you I don't want to sing" He refused firmly. She seemed unhappy, pouting.

"Hm" He heard her mumble.

"I'm warning you, Kotoko" He pointed at her curtly.

"If you insist." She shook her shoulders, disinterested. "You'll miss it" She stuck out her tongue.

"What was that?" He asked in a haughty pose.

"Oh, nothing" She ignored him.

Naoki already knew that Kotoko was only playing with him, to somehow convince him to sing with her, and that game was funny.

"Whatever you're trying to do" He uttered. "You won't convince me to sing with you"

She turned to see him over her shoulder, waggling her eyebrows.

"Hm." She pretended to be outraged, and crossed her arms in a funny way; He smiled even more, delighted with her reactions.

"I'm not easy to convince" He joked sideways.

"How complicated are you, Naoki-kun" She complained, joking.

Naoki's smile widened behind Kotoko's back.

"That's just me" He bragged, crossing his leg.

"At least be more flexible" She blew, feigning anger. "So how can you be a good doctor?" Suddenly, she looked at him tricky.

"What are you implying, Kotoko?" He faced, altering himself a little. When she saw it that way, she laughed.

"At least be more flexible" She blew, feigning anger. "So how can you be a good doctor?" Suddenly, she looked at him tricky.

"What are you implying, Kotoko?" He faced, altering himself a little. When she saw him that way, she laughed.

"At least you changed that gesture on your face" She pointed out, laughing at this one. "This way children will like you, if you want to be a pediatrician, otherwise you will find your area"

"Children's doctor, me?" He huffed out.

Kotoko nodded.

"For me you do belong in that area" She stated. "But it's all a matter of what you like, not my suggestion"

"I am not opposed to that" He admitted in an undoubtedly embarrassed voice, addressing her, and as if a force from outside his own, took the microphone from Kotoko's hand, surprising her by his action. "You already convinced me to sing with you." He looked away, feeling Kotoko's wide eyes fix on his.

"Yes!" Kotoko exclaimed with pleasure. "Let me put the song" She warned in what she was looking for in the karaoke machine.

"Sure" He agreed, a slight blush appearing on his cheeks.

It was so embarrassing to have to do things that normally he would not do in his right mind, but since he knew Kotoko to discern whether what he did was good or not, it was not in him to justify it, because little by little he did what he could to get closer to Kotoko.

She chose Soda Stereo's "De música ligera".

"Let's see if you can keep up with me" She boasted, raising her chin with a fist at chest height.

"We'll see that" He said the same way.

They both started singing when the verse started, however he was more focused on seeing how Kotoko interpreted the words making funny gestures with his face. She kept him from concentrating, even though the song didn't have many verses, just having her by his side singing in his ear left him out of the game.

"The lyrics aren't that difficult." She nudged his right side, causing him to snort in indifference, hiding himself between his feelings.

"I told you I didn't want to sing" He said, giving himself importance.

She raised an eyebrow, mocking him.

"If you say so" She shook her hand, before continuing to sing what the song lacked to finish.

* * *

After having been in the Karaoke until nine o'clock at night, he accompanied her to her apartment, politely saying good night, however, she held him by the arm when she was about to leave.

"What is it?" He asked, raising an eyebrow; even though inside him fluttered like butterflies in the pit of his stomach. She furrowed her eyebrows.

"I wanted to do something quick" She emitted, sure of herself.

"What thing?" He said, keeping with all his will the face of indifference plastered on his face.

Suddenly she spun him around and grabbed him with her arms.

"This!" She exclaimed, giggling. "I am very proud of you, Naoki-kun" She squeezed him a little harder, causing his skin to stand on end, opening his eyes from the immense impression of being hugged by Kotoko in such a pleasant, so cute, so… He didn't know, the descriptions didn't fit in his mind when he imagined a bit of his mind what it would feel like to be reciprocated.

Dreaming cost nothing, but living it firsthand was even better than imagining it.

"I am so glad to know that you are achieving your dream" She breathed out, relieved and happy.

"Thank you, Kotoko." He smirked, his heart fluttering everywhere, feeling the touch like silk behind his skin, like rose petals brushing his cheeks gently.

Maybe he dared to think he could be reciprocated, right?

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**P.S.** (Mention of the song "De música Ligera" from Soda Stereo)


	37. Uncertain future

_"I remembered her tastes, astral conversation, the songs we heard, her lunar body, heavenly refuge and the Ph of her saliva, and I lost myself in the immense stillness"_

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"Nao-kun" His father called looking serious. "Can we talk?"

"What's going on?" He was sitting in his father's study, his leg crossed and his hands in his lap.

"Are you comfortable with your career?" He questioned.

"Well, I suppose" He replied reluctantly.

"Aren't you interested in coming and taking a look at Pandai?" He smirked, puffing out his cheeks and fat hands clasped together.

"Not really." He grimaced in disgust, and seeing his father fade away in front of him, he wanted to make up for his bad temper. "But it's not that I don't want to be with you father, it's just that I don't feel like that's what I want to do"

"So do you know what you want to do in the future?" He sounded less cheerful, meaning the question was serious. "I mean, you tell me it is not what you want to do and I would like to know your plans for the future"

Naoki pondered his response, still unsure of revealing his desire to be a doctor; adding that he had already passed the transfer exam and was close to entering the race.

"I'm undecided"

His father put on a puzzled expression.

"How?"

"I mean, I'm not quite sure what to do with my future, but I don't want to be the successor to your company" He said seriously, clenching his knuckles slightly.

"I understand" He said disappointed, shaking hands in relaxation. "So what do you plan to do?" He wanted to know.

"I need a little time to think about my future" He demanded of himself, hiding his goal of becoming a doctor. "As soon as I know, I'll tell you" He assured, bowing.

"What you think, you can come to Pandai to get an impression of what the business is like" He added calmly. "Even if you don't want to be the successor of my company, you can take a walk to see how things work"

Naoki nodded earnestly, blank eyes and a blank mind space.

"I will keep it in mind"

Lying on the side of the bed, he listened to the mix of songs that Kotoko gave him at Christmas.

After a few weeks of that meeting, they had not seen each other at school and that caused a very curious and painful feeling of emptiness because feeling that way was not a pleasant sensation.

He liked the song he was listening to a lot, a mixture of innovation and good sound motivated him to gradually improve his mood (Soda Stereo's "Crema de estrellas"), despite not understanding the Spanish language, it could mean that the handwriting was pretty.

Lying to his father was not the most reliable thing in the world, however he found in that the only alternative of the moment was that once he belonged, the medical department would tell his parents about his vocation as a doctor.

Whether they accepted it or not was the least of it.

* * *

He sighed peacefully watching the clouds pass through his window, watching the sunset as a pale reflection that reminded him of being alive and being a human being wanting to wake up to a better reality.

He rubbed his hands, leaning his head against the wall of the room, stretching his legs to the other end of his bed.

_I will soon achieve my goals, soon it will be._

He was comforted with the word "soon" who knows how many times it was repeated during the course of the day.

_Soon Kotoko, soon I will tell you my feelings._

"Onii-chan, how much are you doing?" His brother Yuuki looked at him interested in what he heard on the walkman. He paused the song.

"What did you say?" He pretended not to understand anything.

"How much are you doing?" He asked again, kneeling on his bed.

"Listening to music" He said simply.

"I see" He yawned a little sleepily. The night came late as the warning that it will soon be spring then summer. "That Baka hasn't given me new cassettes." He winced with a disappointed grimace.

"Do you want me to ask her for one?" He thought aloud, as a reflection of his interior expressing that he needed to see her. "We are going to the same university, I can tell her to come home and leave you one"

"I'd like to" She agreed, shaking her head as if thinking of something. "Onii-chan, don't you miss that Baka?"

"Why should I?" He said drowsily. "If she is scandalous"

"I'm just saying, the house has been so quiet." The disappointed grin didn't fade from his childish face. "I miss her" He muttered under his breath. Despite the fact that his brother said that, he still didn't remove the fact that they sent messages through social networks, and they had that strange secret that he could not reveal although his curiosity didn't go away from that time, but nevertheless he would not pressure both of them to tell him what they were hiding with so much effort. He knew that one day the truth would come to light no matter how ridiculous his secret was.

_I miss her too_. He thought to himself.

Of course, he would save his feelings to tell the right person. Why should he tell his brother that you liked that Baka? I'd be insane if he told him.

He put the Walkman into play, ending the talk.

* * *

The spring days came without much change in his life, other than studying in advance for a medical degree.

His cell phone vibrated on the way home: It was Kotoko.

He answered immediately, flushed from the face.

"Moshi Moshi"

"Naoki-kun" She greeted casually. "How are you?"

"What do you need?" His voice caught in his throat from the same nervousness of hearing her voice from the other line.

"Can you come to Donnys café?" She sounded rushed, so he asked why she needed him there. "Yuuki told me that he wanted a cassette and that you would pick it up at my work"

He put a hand to his forehead, he had completely forgotten about the cassette.

"I'm going there," he warned before hanging up the cell phone.

_¡Damn! _How could he forget to ask her about the cassette.

That was the least of it, he would have an opportunity to see her in person and he would hurry to talk to her.

He was running with the speed that his steps allowed him._ I have to arrive as soon as possible_. It was required to get on the truck heading to get faster.

Getting off the bus, he ran another leg before finding the premises on one of the small, narrow streets of the Setagawa district of Tokyo.

A figure approached him, disappearing his previous annoyance, with just a small and bright smile his worries were thrown in the trash.

"Kotoko" He spoke, bringing his fingers together, focusing his maximum attention on her.

"Naoki-kun, I'm glad you came" She mentioned as she took a seat in front of him, her black hair gleaming with the lamp on each table in the cafeteria. She had the waiter uniform.

"I say the same." He gave her a sideways smile.

They stared at each other for a few seconds, before she realized the gesture, choosing to shake her hands on the table and remove the cassette from her waiter's dressing gown.

"The cassette." She held it out across the table.

"Yes, thank you." He took it in his grasp, analyzing that it was Metallica's "Metallica" disk, a black disk with a rattlesnake in the lower left corner. "This is a metal record" He commented seriously.

"He said he wanted something a little heavier than I'd shown him in the past." She laughed, raising his eyebrows, as if remembering something. "It doesn't bother me that he ask me that, even if I don't have many metal records, for that I have to go to the music store"

_Music store, huh? I can accompany her and thus spend more time with her. I'd love to do that,_ he smirked to himself. _What a good idea, Naoki._

"May I go with you?" He suggested coldly, matching his graceful movements with his manly and dominant voice. She looked at him in surprise, taking in his words.

"Do you want to come with me?" She replied with confusion, pursing her lips.

He nodded confidently.

"Sure, you can come with me" She muttered happily. "Let's go now"

"What?" He tensed with fright.

"Although it's not night and I'm done with my shift" She insisted nonchalantly.

"But" He tried to defend himself, but seeing her so motivated to go out with him completely shook him. There was no escape.

"Wait for me, I'm going to get dressed" She warned before escaping to the employee area.

As she came, she decided to dial home to tell her brother that she had the disc in her possession.

_Maybe it's not a date and I say yes. Naoki, don't get your hopes up so much, I can't give myself the luxury of thinking that you feel something for me, I have to secure my place in her heart before someone else does._

He could see Ryo giving him mischievous glances from the other end of the cafeteria, as if he were going to catch him for agreeing so quickly to Kotoko's wild desires; He didn't doubt for a second that this was going through the young basketball player's mind.

Without a doubt, he shouldn't be excited about a trip to the music store.

He shouldn't feel that way, but it was inevitable…

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**P.S.** (Mention of the song "Crema de estrellas" from Soda Stereo)


	38. Nights in Tokyo

Leaving the compound, he walked side by side with his female companion on the edge of the sidewalk, feeling the throbbing of his wild chest, wanting to pinch himself for believing in the possibility of being awake. But, it was real. Everything was real as his steps forward proved that theory, his reality.

A small fraction of the world conspired in his favor.

She was in casual clothes, nothing special. Baggy blue jeans held up by a leather belt, a light blue one-piece sweater sheltering it from the cold, a gray trenchcoat at the neck and white Adidas low top sneakers.

_I'm nervous, so much so that I can pass out at any time in case that I reveal myself. _

He reminded himself that he mustn't betray himself for the same euphoria of having an unexpected date on any given day. A Friday afternoon/night. One day he was planning to take her easy, but it was not expected that he would be walking with the girl he likes on the streets of Tokyo.

"Is the store far away?" He inquired.

"Not much" She clarified, wrinkling her face. "We will take the bus there and back"

"But where are we going?" He wanted to know, because the one she and Yuuki had gone with were on the other route. "We are going to another side of the store that is closest to my house"

"This is another one, much better than the one near your house." She replied with her index finger pointing to the air.

Arriving at the bus stop, no word was said.

The discomfort of silence penetrated him to the bone, he even felt pale if he did not speak about any subject.

Distracted, he didn't notice that the bus had reached the stop and she told him to hurry to get on, when he saw that he did not respond, he grabbed his hand to get on the truck as soon as he was about to leave.

The agitation of the movement took him out of his musings and he entered the truck without analyzing the situation he was in.

White lights discreetly illuminated the public transport in sharp filaments distributed in the essential parts of the transport.

He felt a heat foreign to his, one that gave him security and stillness. He turned down, where he realized he was holding Kotoko's hand.

A paralysis accentuated in his body, his breathing escaped from his lungs in a tumult of sensations. They were holding hands!

_I can't believe it!_

She casually looked at the window, clutching her free hand on the handle of the public transport, looking calm.

On the other hand, he was more red than a tomato, fortunately for the night he had sat in the city and the poor lighting did not give him away from his exalted physique.

_I must be dreaming…_

He looked again at his left hand taken from the girl with his, they looked like a whole couple from a magazine.

He felt himself turn pale and shudder in seconds and one of his dreams were fulfilled, however he noticed that she was not letting him go so he supposed that there was a possibility that she felt more than friendship.

* * *

Getting off the bus, they continued to hold hands.

Naoki determined to question her, didn't hesitate twice to ask.

"Kotoko" He called, trying to stay calm. "The hand" He said.

"What about the hand?" She seemed absent from the action of holding hands. He lifted her up, implying that the two of them were going that way. "Oh! The hand" She grumbled. "It bothers you?"

_It doesn't bother me, on the contrary, I really like it._

Paralyzed, he was speechless. What could he say if it didn't bother him? What bothered you? No, it would be stooping a lot and that was not his style.

"Hm…" He sighed uneasily.

"Then we'll continue like this" She declared confidently.

He lowered his arm and his hand sought to entwine with his as they walked, this allowed him to do so, letting himself be carried away by his emotions.

They walked the streets, looking like every happy young couple. Stores clinking lights in advertisements, and the smell of food was everywhere.

Suddenly they entered a small, passable-looking place; Japanese decorations hung at the entrance and a smell of cream filled the place. A paradise of records surrounded the venue, tables and record tables of different musical genres, both new and old. The lights changed color in the booth where you listened to the vinyl you chose from the Lp's shelves.

"We're here," She announced as looking for someone. "Nozomi!"

_Nozomi? The basketball player?_

A young boy with blond curls with flaky roots, of average height and a secure and calm presence appeared from the vinyl booth.

"Kotoko!" He greeted surprised to see her. "It's been a while since you came to visit me"

"I already saved enough to buy the cassette," she stated with a pleasant smile.

Nozomi seemed a more affable boy than Ryo, mature and less of a yeller; however, he had already seen him on the university campus when he accompanied Kotoko to the singing session.

"I see you're not coming alone" He commented noticing the inevitable presence of Naoki that was he still holding Kotoko's hand.

"Naoki-kun is coming with me" She replied, giving him a handshake.

"That's what I see" He sighed incredulously. "And I don't believe it"

Kotoko laughed at the blonde's comment, releasing the chestnut's hand who in surprise turned to see that she put both hands on her face in shame at the scandalous laughter she brought.

"Stop teasing me, Kotoko" Nozomi emerged from his trance of disbelief. "I will go to the cellar to bring you what you asked me last time"

"What did you ask him?" Naoki leaned in to ask him when the boy had left the place.

"A cassette from Cerati's presentation on the FM100 radio" She replied, standing on tiptoe.

"I see"

He wanted to take her hand, but he was afraid he would make a mistake doing it so soon.

He would hang on from there until they left her friend's store. Or the store her friend worked at.

Nozomi left the warehouse holding in her grip a cassette without a cover, inside the plastic box.

"I recorded it exactly as you asked for it" He assured with the front teeth gleaming from his mouth.

"Excellent." She grabbed him with awe and high respect. "I love having this presentation in my hands." She jumped with excitement, screaming with excitement throughout the store, leaving the two young men alone.

"What would you like, Irie-san?" He looked at him with respect and admiration, just as they did in high school.

"I'm fine, thanks" He said simply beyond coldness.

"Anything you need, you can ask me, Irie-san" He offered very professionally to him.

"Tell me, Naoki" He ordered with seriousness and coldness in his tone.

"Oh sorry" He apologized quickly. "Naoki"

"How much do I owe you, Nozomi?" Kotoko suddenly appeared.

"Nothing, Kotoko." Her eyelids snapped open like light bulbs in disbelief. "The cassette goes on my own"

"But"

"No buts." He slapped her on the head as if it were a child "And don't look at me with that face" He scolded, to which she pouted.

"You're bad" She grumbled.

"And to think that I made you that precious cassette you tell me that I'm bad." He lectured mischievously, put his fingers on her cheeks and pulled them up and down making her look like a joke. "Naughty girl"

"Let go of me" She complained in disgust.

Naoki couldn't help but laugh at Nozomi's gesture, he seemed like a cool guy compared to Ryo's mouth or Kinnosuke's screamer.

Her blond friend released her with a giggle, as she recovered from the pull of her cheeks, rubbing her face with misfortune.

"We're leaving," she said resentfully.

"I'll be here until your next visit." He chuckled maliciously with his hands on his waist, puffing out his chest with laughter.

* * *

"That Nozomi is an unconscious" She complained on the way back, stomping on the street.

"He is more pleasant than you" He huffed with an air of superiority. "At least he's not scandalous"

"Hey!" She gave him a nape on the back of the neck causing his head to jerk forward.

"And aggressive" He added, his hand on the back of his neck, squeezing his eyes shut.

"Whose side are you on?"

"None"

"How could you not be?" She sighed through clenched teeth. This was funny to him and he wanted to keep pestering her.

"Can't I be on my side?" He said sarcastically. "I say because I also exist in the equation"

"You're right" She said defeated, stomping on the street again with her fists clenched. _How adorable she gets when she gets mad._

"I'm always right" The chestnut bragged.

"Smug" She muttered under his breath, ducking his head. Apparently she believed that he wouldn't listen to her, but she was wrong because he did heard her.

"You mean smart" He corrected with a superior air, walking with his head held high and his hands in his pockets. "And attractive"

"Vain would be the word"

He was having fun with the conversation even though they did not come to anything, because she became taciturn as if her mind occupied other thoughts that were not conversing with him.

_What could she be thinking about?_

"Kotoko?" He called, seeing that there was no answer, tried again. "Kotoko? Oi!"

She reacted to the stimulus of his call, her eyes wide and her mouth half open.

"What"

"You were distracted and you didn't answer me" He spoke excitedly, trying to keep up with the her steps.

"Sorry" She apologized, waking up from the apparent trance she was in. She waved her arms to show that he was in his five senses, putting a hand to her head, rubbing the black hair of her straight hair. "I was thinking"

"What were you thinking?" He asked, puzzled by her behavior.

"Things" She expressed hesitantly.

"Which ones?" He pressed in a serious voice.

"I'm not going to tell you, She snapped dubiously to speak.

_What the hell!_

"Kotoko don't evade me." He approached her while walking through the busy streets.

She stopped dead in her tracks, catching him off guard on the verge of bumping into any traffic light. She was staring at the floor, rolling her eyes in all directions, rubbing her hands together in small pressures, indicating that she was nervous.

He had never seen her in that state.

"Kotoko?" He softened the tone of his cold, serious voice.

"I forgot to buy the metal disc" She muttered under her breath, analyzing her own words. "That's what I took you to the store for and I just picked up my cassette." She tugged at her hair in anger. "How could I forget!"

Naoki was reassured by the confession, she had only missed buying a metal disc because of the distraction with his friend Nozomi Yuuki.

He made a sideways smile, softening the gesture on his frigid face.

"Kotoko, don't worry." He put both hands on her shoulders, shaking her to stop her hair from ruffling in tremendous disorder. "It will be another time" He assured firmly.

"You think?" She looked at him with hopeful eyes. They made him remember Chibi, the dog she rescued on high school graduation day. He nodded. "So you're not mad at me?"

"Of course not." He nodded again before releasing her.

A smile from ear to ear appeared on the her youthful face, her tousled hair didn't fade the beauty of her youth. That was his girl.

They continued on their way back to the point of arriving at the bus stop, where crowds of people decreased as they left the busy district.

A heat foreign to his brought him out of his thoughts, the her hand had taken him suddenly. She took his hand again in one of those times when he let his guard down.

He turned to see her, she was smiling at her with her eyelids closed and her teeth gleaming.

He accepted the loving gesture.

That was the girl he loved.


	39. The annoying suitor

Mid-spring surrounded the cherry blossoms that were in full bloom, pink petals fell down the sidewalks, and the gray paths were colored in a very elegant pale pink.

The brunette was wearing casual clothes with his hands tucked into the pockets of his long jeans, advancing toward college, backpack in hand and headphones on to the rhythm of Depeche Mode's "Enjoy de Silence", one of his new favorite songs from the spring.

He was already in the process of transferring to the medical department, which meant that he was arranging his transfer papers so he would have to wait a little longer than he should; In the meantime, he would go to tennis practice like any other day.

_Soon._

He consoled himself recently with that word, it gave him security.

_It will soon be the day that I will formally enter to study medicine._

Meddled in his affairs, life went its way without asking his permission, avoiding taking it into account when his own cowardice and helplessness brought out the best in him.

* * *

"Irie!" Sudou-senpai was yelling at him from a distance on the tennis court. He looked very excited to speak to him. "Irie! Come here" He ordered euphorically.

"What do you want?" He had approached him, his face impatient.

"Sincere yourself with Matsumoto" He ordered sternly. "If you don't like her, don't have her attached to you as a pet"

"She's not my pet" He snapped angrily, folding his arms. "I've already told her several times that I am not interested in her"

"Say it well."

"I already did that." He frowned.

"Show her that she doesn't have a chance with you" He said as a last alternative.

"Like what?" He asked annoyed.

"Kiss Aihara"

His blood froze like an iceberg focusing on his nervous system._ Kiss ... Kotoko?_

"Matsumoto doesn't like Aihara, you can use her as a hook and explain that you have something with her so that she doesn't insist" He explained with open hands and a hopeful smile.

_Using Kotoko as a hook is a no, I wouldn't think of doing that to her._

_I would kiss her because I love her._

"I will not use Kotoko for that purpose" He snapped, his face wrinkled.

Sudou-senpai's face fell in disappointment.

"Kotoko is not someone to play with." He finished the conversation about to get dressed and stay in tennis practice.

_Who does he think he is to tell me to use Kotoko for that purpose? He's insane! Kotoko doesn't deserve to be used for any purpose, if she is the most adorable girl in the world._

Tennis practices went smoothly until the new members of the tennis team were announced where Matsumoto's younger sister joined the team. Matsumoto Ayako. A girl who immediately shot him a flirtatious look, the unmistakable look of interest towards him.

Ayako was identical to her older sister, the difference between the two was the girl's short hair. Attractive yes, but not for your tastes. His heart already belonged to someone much better than the two of them put together.

However, Taketo Nakagawa's annoying presence was also integrated among them, with the excuse of training from time to time, that is, not always, as he gave himself the luxury of having those privileges. He seemed like a nefarious guy, anyway, the only thing he wanted to make sure was that the confession he made to Kotoko, of which she herself commented that she was not interested in him, understood that Kotoko was very clear with him and also, very unfortunately, she was in love with someone else.

It would be an exhaustive task to conquer her without losing patience, something that he kept very intact.

* * *

Being in the practices an undeniable presence called him by his name: Kotoko

"Naoki-kun!" She waved her arms in excitement.

He slowed down from training and he run to greet her, who was glued to the fence with her hair tossed about in the air and her basketball clothes.

"Kotoko" He spoke calmly with the racket in hand. "What are you doing here?"

"I was coming to see your practice" She mentioned, fingers interlocked on the bars. "And I wanted to know if I could film the practice, I say without showing their faces, only the action of hitting the ball with the racket"

"Film? What for?" He wanted to know, he felt her excited to do it and he liked that.

"I want to get practice in filming." She smiled affably, causing him a pound with good emotions. "I'll ask Sudou-senpai." She slipped out of the entrance to the tennis club, passing the bars with the camcorder in her grip, as he went to the entrance to be with her.

Sudou-senpai saw her enter.

"Aihara" He greeted friendly. "What brings you here? Don't tell me that you were already interested in entering the tennis club"

"No, it's nothing like that" She replied with a confident smile. "I wanted to ask you if I can record today's practice" She showed the camcorder. "It's to grab practice filming, I will not record the faces of any of the people here, just the movement" She said with a nod.

Sudou-senpai was thoughtful for a few seconds, putting a finger to his chin.

"Well, why not?" He nodded. "Just don't distract the students too much" He warned with an eyebrow raised.

"Understood." She made a military pose with her hand on her forehead, firm.

"Don't forget my suggestion" Sudou whispered into Naoki's ear, which twitched full-length. _That guy! He doesn't know how to give up_. He closed his eyes in frustration, frowning.

"Naoki-kun?" Kotoko had approached her face on tiptoe. "Are you okay?"

He nodded, opening his eyes putting on his mask of haughtiness and superiority.

He was furious at Sudou's suggestion during practice, where Kotoko recorded the movements of hitting the ball with the racket focusing on the constantly moving bodies around the court.

He was struck by the fact that he was not distracting to the people of the club, since he was being careful with the handling of the camera and the correct angles. You could tell he was passionate about cinema as much as playing basketball.

He became nervous when she went to the court where he played double games with Ayako as a couple and Matsumoto with Sudou the other couple. They were practicing for next month's doubles matches and were happy with the order in which the pairs were formed. Naoki settled in with Ayako's agility and dexterity in hitting the tennis ball.

He was so nervous that he began to sweat the same sensation of wanting to turn around and take her in his arms and get out of there. Kotoko, obviously, was absent of such feelings, more than to remain to film the players while they practiced.

The simultaneous heat was rampant in the hot spring environment, consisting of accelerating the production of sweating in his great body. Naoki felt that it would melt any minute he stopped drinking water and the sun rose from ultraviolet rays.

In an instant, one of the balls flew out falling into a tree, getting caught in one of the twigs in the crown. An entry-level tennis practitioner caused that slip. A practitioner better known as Taketo Nakagawa.

He didn't mind that matter at all until Kotoko shot herself toward the tree announcing "I'm going to get it " Leaving the camcorder in Taketo's hands.

He got irritated because she didn't give the camcorder to him, why did she have to give it to that boy? Didn't she see that he also existed?

Sudou-senpai stopped the doubles practice upon hearing that Kotoko had fallen from the tree. It was such a crash that several branches fell to the ground and her scream as she fell made them stop instantly.

_Kotoko!_

Naoki threw the racket and went after her.

He was the first to come to the rescue, he saw her with the ball in her hand and the various leaves of the tree and the branches fallen on it, counterbalancing her.

_Thank goodness she's fine_, he breathed a sigh of relief. He believed that his heart would stop at any moment, the perspiration increased as he went to the rescue of the girl, although it did not end up being a rescue because she was perfect, more than the bed of branches and leaves that trapped her.

"Kotoko!" He yelled to see if she answered. "Are you hurt?"

"Not at all" She exclaimed with presence, her hidden face didn't let him see if she hadn't hurt her face.

His little fortune was evident when the rest of the players came to take all the mess off him, seeing Taketo holding the camcorder holding out his hand, he felt the rage to burn his hands with a match.

"Are you alright, Aihara-san?" Asked Taketo aware of her state.

"Super good." She jumped on both feet. "It was just a little slip."

"It was all my fault this happened" He blamed himself with sad eyes.

"Don't blame yourself, I was the one who climbed the tree" She assured with a sideways smile. "Not you"

_Stop talking to him, you're not her type._

Naoki clenched his teeth, wanting to shake Taketo and tell him that Kotoko belonged to him even if it wasn't true, but he wanted to get him out of the game.

"Aihara, you're too reckless" Matsumoto commented, shaking her curly hair back in a superior movement.

"Not as much as you say" she defended herself carefree. "It's my nature"

"Well, seeing that Aihara is in good condition, let's continue with the training" Sudou ordered with a fake smile and good leadership.

Naoki's sidelong glances with respect to Kotoko succumbed to shake him inside, although outside he maintained the superiority front above all, nothing made him feel as human as Kotoko. So unequivocally human.

* * *

His training had just ended and also her recordings that she supervised on her camcorder, he was thinking of approaching her and talking about trivial matters.

The thought was useless because he saw with surprise that Taketo was approaching to talk to her. A tremendous rage came to him, clenching his jaw and gnashing his teeth, he snorted with the same courage.

_That boy doesn't learn!_

He rubbed his hands together, beginning to grasp them with the same rage, the one that erased his reasoning. If that made him so angry that he wanted to burn the subject's hands, he didn't want to imagine what he would do when he saw Taketo kiss Kotoko on the lips. He would end up sending him to the operating room.

Tempted to teach him a lesson, one that would nullify the girl's alleged suitors, he would carry it out. He would throw away his reasoning, because he would solve that matter like a man (according to him). One who defends the girl he liked.

He walked towards the two who were conversing cheerfully, snorting inside, he headed with the racket in hand and a tennis ball in the other. He didn't know how or when, he only waved his arm, throwing the ball into the air and with the other arm hitting hard towards the small ball. He watched as she spoke to Taketo's face in a frenzy. He didn't count on the Kotoko getting between the ball and Taketo's face, a blow hit Kotoko's face falling in an unattractive way to the ground.

_Damn._

He ran to Kotoko who was lying on the ground on dry ground, Taketo was helping her and that bothered him, so he ran faster to stop the scene.

He removed Taketo's hands and lifted Kotoko into his arms, taking her surprised look from her who didn't understand what was happening.

"I lost the ball, sorry" He said regretfully. "It wasn't my intention that it would slip away, it was a miscalculation"

"I don't understand" She yelled, rubbing at her red cheek as the ball hit her left cheek.

"Was it you?" Taketo accused him.

"Yes, but it was a mistake" He assured firmly.

"But you never fail." Taketo didn't seem convinced of his feat.

"Sometimes geniuses can fail" He spluttered. "Kotoko, I am are going to assist you"

"I'm fine" She assured him stubbornly.

"No, you're not" He corrected bluntly, looking like a father scolding his disobedient daughter. "I'll make it up to you by healing that wound" He stated as the last argument between them.

_I was a fool, a jealous fool._

His action led him to hurt the girl who he vowed not to hurt.

That oath turned out to be returned to him. He broke it when he blinded his reason.

Lying was not his best option, however, in those types of situations it was essential to say that it was a miscalculation that didn't know the direction of the ball and where it would stop. He would have to compensate her well if he wanted his affections to be reciprocated.

Kotoko insisted on getting down from his arms, but he refuted that it was necessary to make up for his mistake.

"Auch" She complained when he touched the bruised cheek.

"I'm almost done" He replied, using a more gentle touch. Despite being tough, she was still a woman. "Just don't move, it will make it hurt more"

"Okay" She said impatiently. "Was it really a miscalculation? It seems crazy to me that the ball slip out of your hands—

"Yes, Kotoko, my arm went away" He assured as if his life depended on it. "I used the same force I used without having a specific address"

"I'll believe you." She frowned uncomfortably, was it from the same pain?

"Kotoko?" There was no answer. _Is she thinking of something?_ "Oi! Kotoko"

As she turned, their faces collided, leaving them at the expense of breathing the same breath. Naoki froze as his blood expanded in a frenzy and his palpitations accelerated.

She walked away disturbed by that action.

"Sorry, I wasn't paying attention to you"

He was speechless, in a taciturn state, completely absolved in his emotions that had become maddened by that intense approach between the two. They had never come so close in the time they had known each other.

It took a few minutes for him to recover from that encounter before he could speak.

"I'm done healing you" He was able to pronounce stunned body and mind.

"Thank you, Naoki-kun." She smiled at him quite gratefully, laying a hand on his brown hair, making him shudder again for taking him by surprise.

* * *

Leaving the infirmary, they returned to the tennis court where Naoki had left his tennis equipment.

Regret shook him like electric shock. How could he be wrong? Since when did he stop being so rational? Being rational left him adrift in panic and solving nothing. Being rational made him look like a fool. Being rational was not part of the game if you wanted to win it.

He needed to earn it because he wanted to.

He was considered the perfect candidate for Kotoko's heart.

The only one who could bear everything to have her by his side.

"I'll go get my things, wait for me" He warned eloquently.

"Sure"

Going for his things that were in the same place, he went to the dressing room to change into something more comfortable than his sweaty sportswear. He preferred to look neat, especially, in front of Kotoko.

He rubbed his fingers together before adjusting his hair that had grown over the months from his carelessness. Leaving the dressing room, he headed with the sports backpack on his shoulder and well-groomed hair, sighed to relax after his horrible blunder on the court for his lack of reason.

He found Kotoko waiting for him at the entrance to the court, leaning against the metal bars, humming a song.

"Ready"

"Oh" She exclaimed scared, jumping. "You scared me, Naoki-kun"

"You were very concentrated"

"Something like that" She giggled nervously.

"Aihara!" Sudou-senpai's scream scared her away.

"Sudou-senpai" She said into the air, lowering her hands from the nape of her neck. "What can I do for you?"

"You left your backpack lying here." He handed it to her suspiciously, shaking the large, hairy hand of a man he owned. "I thought you were going with Irie and I was right to suppose so"

"Thank you, Sudou-senpai." She bowed and grabbed her backpack.

"Another thing, Aihara" He pointed out impatiently.

"Tell me"

"What relationship do you have with Irie?" He asked desperate to know, to which she looked at him with a strange face, raising her eyebrows.

"I couldn't tell you, because I didn't understand your question"

How could she not tell him? Weren't they friends?

Naoki guessed that perhaps she was beginning to feel something for him. It could be the cause of her behavior towards him had changed a bit, she no longer spoke so roughly and they even hugged each other the other day.

A smile curved his lips, feeling triumphant even a little bit.

Sudou was puzzled and speechless.

"I just asked what kind of relationship you guys have" He clarified still puzzled.

"Oh" She sighed, analyzing her words. "We are friends" She pointed out into the open air with a relieved expression.

Why relief?

What did that mean?

"What's that question about, Sudou-senpai?" She asked interested.

"Just curious." He restrained himself from exclaiming in front of her and Naoki noticed it because he was pursing his lips so that they were like a straight and firm line, that meant he was holding back from exasperating in screams.

"Stop asking her weird questions." Naoki approached him with a threatening look. "Don't you think of using Kotoko for other purposes"

"What purposes?" She was confused with what he said.

Naoki took her by the arm, pulling her away from Sudou who would probably say strange things that would make her uncomfortable or that she would not fully understand. He was protecting her.

"What did you mean, Naoki-kun?" He released her grip.

"Nothing"

"It didn't seem to be anything" She continued with a pleading expression. "Sudou-senpai wanted to use me?"

"Stop asking" The genius stated, his head covered with gross thoughts.

"I want to know"

"Please don't continue." He was about to explode in those crude, foolish and delusional thoughts that betrayed him because protecting her was conflictive, however, he did it because he wanted her.

It made her keep quiet with that phrase "please don't continue."

How desperate did he feel? Powerless enough not to be honest? Yes.

She continued to whistle the song she previously sang as she waited, each wandering in his own mind, it probably won't lead to anything good, will it?

He saw Matsumoto walking close to him, wanting to get his attention.

He wasn't in the mood to deal with her too, it frustrated him that she didn't understand him enough to leave him alone with his love life.

Deciding for his love life would be up to him. Just him.


	40. Eight musical encounter

_"__I don't need to see you to know" _

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Sometimes the trivialities warmed the skin, or the songs subjected him to a relaxing heat and worth living and witnessing raw.

Naoki previously believed that every song had a very specific message embedded in its composition, in its lyrical structure, but nevertheless, he always ended up looking for the song that best described his current state.

The mathematical and physical formulas were not enough to explain such a phenomenon, or why his heart was racing when the lyrics described his feelings better than himself.

Neither having the best IQ or being the best student in Japan could discover everything that happened to him, and he also couldn't understand where the love for Kotoko came from; his intense attachment to her, the feeling of longing for her, which was the origin of everything.

Kotoko was her origin and her trigger to seek a change in his person. She was his guide in life, his compass for choosing and making decisions, his inspiration and his first love; Plus, she was his first kiss.

Naoki didn't need to see numbers to know it.

He didn't need to see an answer to know it.

* * *

The months passed and July arrived sweeping with scorching heat and the holidays were approaching with great speed that predisposed the young Naoki to postpone the fact of telling his father that he was already studying medicine.

He wouldn't say that it was fear on his part, what happened was that if he commented to him, he would have to give explanations. Explanations that gave him laziness to give.

However, Naoki knew that he must speak, so running away all the time would not lead to anything new, but to prolong it, to ramble on trifles that involved the loss of seconds that became minutes until months passed.

First of all, Naoki had his free time, since his classes that day had ended and returning home made him lazy.

He took a seat on a bench, putting on his headphones and began to search for songs among the playlist of the cassette that Kotoko gave him at Christmas, because even he didn't finish listening to it completely, more than two or three songs and the thing was left behind there.

As he searched, his eyes found something worth losing his concentration in less than a blink. His eyes found the figure that made him lose his mind, the reasoning, the logic of things.

That slender, strong figure, her hazel eyes, her straight black hair, length to the back, that walk so unique and deep.

His heart raced, collided with his chest, and returned to his spinal cord to repeat the same cycle of beats; likewise, his thumb, which was the finger that changed the songs, was stopped in a song that caught his attention.

The song of "No necesito verte (Para saberlo)" by Soda Stereo, vibrated from his headphones, creating a rhythmic and graceful dance, plunging him into the trance that his eyes captured with so much longing rooted in every particle of certainty.

Kotoko walked so naturally that he was hypnotized, strolling around the university campus with the walkman adjusted to the fold of her jeans at knee height, a short-sleeved blood-red polo shirt, her hair loose and dancing to the rhythm from the wind, her head held high, her arms moved with nobility adorning her pretty figure.

Naoki stared at her from his posture, enraptured by her substantial presence, which he loved so much to see.

He didn't need to see her to know that he loved her, to know that she was driving him crazy, to know that she had been an earthquake in his life since her first appearance.

He couldn't describe it in words, but it was true that this tumult of sensations that filled him like a chemical reaction about to explode, meant only one thing: Naoki loved her.

Without specifying it better, she noticed his presence as an idiotic lover and addressed him, smiling at him. A chill ran down his spine and went back to his head, freaking him out and he immediately took off his headphones.

"Naoki-kun" Kotoko greeted him, taking a seat next to him. He nodded at the greeting, returning it politely and stoically. "What were you listening to?" She asked curiously.

"Nothing relevant" He replied indifferently. The drive was eating away at him, for the corner of his eye focused his attention on Kotoko's hand, which rested on both sides.

"Do you have plans for the holidays?" She changed the subject, being as pretty about it as ever.

"No" He replied again in that indifferent gesture that unfortunately came as natural as if it were an action his DNA forced him to do. "And you, Kotoko?"

"Yes" She said cheerfully. "I will work during the holidays, I'm almost done with all my pendants to return to you." She paused. "I'm already excited about that!"

Naoki couldn't help but suppress a mischievous smile forming on his lips. Kotoko would finally live in his home again.

How eternal it was to live that funeral experience.

"How nice" He commented in a more pleasant tone. "Where are you going to work?"

"I don't know" She admitted, giggling nervously. "Actually, I have a lot of work ideas, but I still haven't decided which one is right for me"

"Why do you say you're going to work if you don't know where?" He huffed, grimacing sideways.

"Well" She laughed. "I'm still thinking"

"You think about things a lot, Kotoko" He said, glancing at her longingly, clearly disguising his feelings.

"Yes" She laughed softly. "Otherwise I won't be able to mature"

"Mature?" He repeated interested.

She agreed.

"I have to see all my options" She continued. "If not otherwise, I will limit my potential, and also I need to learn to mature, because that's the way we adults are"

"You think?" He questioned her, getting a nod from her. "Why do you see it that way, Kotoko?"

"Because I don't need to see it, to know it" She replied with a wide coincidence, so that his skin stood on end.

"How?" He exteriorized surprised.

"What thing?" She blankly gestured.

"What you just said" He replied uneasily. Seeing that she didn't understand him, he added: "What I meant was that you didn't need to see it to know it."

"Ah" She said, understanding him. "I meant that I don't need to see things to know that it is essential for me, the fact of being able to mature with the passage of time, such as for example" She raised his index finger. "Taketo has been behind me, and I gave him an opportunity, but upon getting to know him better I realized that he is a very good boy." He tightened his jaw. "But he is not the person I like, and what it has to do with maturing is that I noticed my feelings, and I also realized what my reason gave me to understand"

"So you don't like that guy?" He asked somewhat hopefully, although he already knew the answer without even asking him directly. Seeing her nod, a smile formed on his lips, dictating that he still had his way clear, of course, for now.

"That's what I mean by maturing, Naoki-kun" Kotoko said clearly. "There are times when you don't need to see things to know them, sometimes it's just pure intuition"

"You're right" He agreed, discreetly approaching her, moving a few inches from the bench.

"I came to that conclusion" She continued, not realizing that he approached her. "After thinking about it so much in my moments alone in my apartment"

"I see" He said harshly, because when he heard that there were times when Kotoko passed time alone, it unleashed in him a close concern for her well-being. He having everything for his status, he cared for the girl he liked; it was obvious that he would do it at this point that it took to know her.

"Now, if you will tell me what you were listening to?" She eyed him curiously.

"What?" He snapped out.

"Yes, I want to know what you were listening to." She approached him, causing a blush on his cheeks that he effectively hid behind his skin. Kotoko was too impulsive, even for him to deal with.

"Here" He handed her one of his earphones, returning the track. "Don't make scandals" He complained, while she responded by sticking her tongue out in mischief.

"Thank you" She said as she placed the earphone on her ear.

When he started the song, she cried out with excitement.

"I know this song!"

"Obviously" He snorted, folding his arms in an aristocratic manner.

As both of them became engrossed in listening to the song, Naoki knew that he didn't need to see the surroundings to know that his feelings for Kotoko grew every day without limits.

There was no end to them, as they were already in tune with his anatomy.

And so, the summer holidays arrived for the genius, who hoped that things would work in his favor.

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**P.S.** (Mention of the song "No necesito verte (Para saberlo)" from Soda Stereo)


	41. Converging feelings

**"Converging feelings"**

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July arrived with hot winds, intense sun rays enough to burn the skin or cook an egg in an outdoor frying pan.

Chibi's growth was more than clear, ending in an almost obese weight, but certain of being healthy.

Naoki was crawling due to the intense heat running through the walls of his room, such intense heat that he couldn't dress properly without leaving his clothes wet with the same sweat.

Kotoko was still not moving in with them, so Naoki was undecided whether or not to dial his cell phone to hear news about her. In fact, all he knew was that she had gotten another job over the summer vacation, which was why they hadn't seen each other since then.

"Onii-chan!" Yuuki appeared inside the room where he was already sleeping alone, without his brother.

"Yuuki," he sighed dejectedly, lying on the floor with a longing for fresh air.

"Let's go see that Baka" He announced with a giggle.

Naoki woke up from the trance of wanting fresh air to the trance thinking of Kotoko again.

"How?"

"Mom got to know where she works and we'll visit her" He said excitedly. "She is in Villa Romance, because a certain coach gave her that job"

_Nothing more and nothing less than Sudou_. Obvious. _The other time I heard that he needed someone to take care of a summer house_. He guessed.

"When are we going?" He wanted to know.

"Today"

"What?" He blurted out in defense. "But if it's barely ten in the morning"

"It doesn't matter." He deflected Naoki's words in a jiffy. "Mom says that with the subway we will get there in an hour and a half, apart it is not that far and we will only go both"

"Won't Mom and Dad come?" He asked, puzzled by his mother's behavior.

"No, just us." He jumped with excitement, starting with packing his suitcase and backpack with his notebook and writing supplies. "Hurry, Onii-chan to arrive as soon as possible and surprise that Baka"

He stood as a spring wrapped in energy alien to his past days of meditation with pure music played on his walkman. He put two changes of clothes, two of casual shoes, a change of light pajamas to withstand high temperatures, a small suitcase, underwear, personal hygiene utensils and a jacket in case it gets cold.

In a black luggage backpack, he put the walkman and a few cassettes to listen to on the way there, any book, his cell phone and the cell phone charger, a head cap and a notebook to write notes.

"Onii-chan." His mother entered the room overflowing with joy. "Are you ready to go out yet?"

"Mother, don't rush me." He cleared his throat as he finished fitting his freshly cut hair into a good hairstyle and his summer clothes did not cause him discomfort due to perspiration.

"I'm done!" Yuuki exclaimed, dressed in a blue short-sleeved shirt and light brown bermuda shorts, a small hat on his fisherman's head.

"Yuuki you look adorable" His mother squealed with pleasure.

"Mom" He snapped, embarrassed to the bone.

"By the way, Onii-chan, your father wants to talk to you before you leave" She said as a reminder, nothing special.

Having his things ready, he hurried to see his father at the study where he was found waiting for him with his hands on his belly.

"Ah, Nao-kun." He looked at him with pleasure, giving him a slight smile.

"Father" He nodded seriously. "Did you want to tell me something?"

"I was curious to know your plans for the future, do you remember?"

How could he not remember if he had barely found out that he was accepted into medicine. The problem was cheering up and revealing the truth, however, he would hide it for now and tell him when he is ready.

"I do remember" He muttered seriously.

"I want to know what you thought, son" He commented calmly, revealing the atmosphere of trust.

"I was thinking of changing my career" He admitted, tensing his body, hiding his secret. "I still don't know which one, but I'm not comfortable studying engineering"

His father thoughtfully watched as he continued to talk about what he would do about his future. Naoki froze in his chair, waiting for the chance to get out.

"I'll give you back here from Villa Romance" He stated seriously, rubbing his belly gently, meaning he was a little nervous. "Your mother told me that you are going to see Kotoko-chan, say hello to her and tell her that she is welcome when she is encouraged to stop living alone"

"Sure" He nodded blankly.

"By the way, are you Kotoko'chan's boyfriend?" He wanted to know, putting on a small excited smile.

Naoki blushed at the question._ She's not my girlfriend yet, father, she will be._

"No" He replied in a low voice. "What's with the question?" He coughed a little incredulously. His father looked at him curiously, as well as satisfied to see a different expression in his older son.

"It just so happened that one day when I was coming back home" He began to relate peacefully, as if he remembered something pleasant. "I looked at you with Kotoko-chan in the night district, and you were holding hands"

Naoki was still in the seat, stuck with indelible rubber against the chair because if he could run away, he would have, but his fear was greater than his own strength.

"It seemed strange to me because I know that you're not like that." He continued without taking importance of his situation. "But I was pleased to know that there is a strong connection between you, and I am glad to suppose that you are Kotoko-chan's boyfriend." He smiled as he crossed his fingers over his belly, closing his eyelids with pride.

Naoki swallowed hard, biting his lower lip, squeezing both hands on the saddle rests.

"Kotoko is not my girlfriend" He stated feeling his mouth dry.

"Son" His father sighed, separating the fingers from his clasped hands. "I know you feel things for her, but if it calms you down I won't tell your mother" He assured smiling. "However, don't you think you can hide things from me for being who you are, remember that I am your father" He raised an eyebrow, authoritative. "And like your father, there are things that even if you don't tell me, I will know them because you are my son and because I love you"

Naoki looked up, feeling his mind blur with so many thoughts flying in the same place. On the one hand he wanted to deny his feelings, but on the other, hiding that he loved Kotoko fervently, was impossible. "I have always loved you son"

"Ah…" He sighed monotonously, unwilling to express himself. His father's emotional speech came like a bolt of lightning striking his chest like an arrow piercing his heart. Likewise, he loved his father.

"Nao-kun," his father named him. "I want you to know that the decision you make will be in my favor, but please don't delay taking action on it"

He nodded, bringing the matter to an end.

"Now if you allow me I will retire to get to Villa Romance early" He reported.

"Yes, son, have fun on the trip." He got up from the chair, adjusting his glasses. "We will talk about your future when you return"

"Yes father, we will do that" He assured just as he retired. "Take care of yourself." He made a slight nod and left for the trip.

* * *

The way out turned out to be faster than he expected, he was weighing on what he would do to make his relationship with Kotoko strong and close, he tried not to flinch but planning things did not help him advance in the game of love.

He needed action, not reason.

Act instead of thinking so much.

He listened to the Actually of Pet Shop Boys before seeing that his brother was in Morpheus' arms. He liked that his brother expressed himself more than he did, that he was less serious and closed to the world as he was throughout his adolescence.

He was proud to see that his brother was evolving rapidly compared to him.

Arriving at Villa Romance they were amazed at the beauty of the natural landscape, the wide greenery and the trees providing clean and fresh air.

To get to Villa Romance they had to go down a small path down until they came across the announcement that they had reached the place, while their brother did not cease to marvel at the beauties of nature.

They passed through the entrance to the Villa, asking for a room for two in the lobby. Fortunately, his mother reserved a room for him and Yuuki. Sometimes her mother's occurrences were effective.

Each was given the key to the room and the room number.

Leaving the suitcases at their disposal, they went to the room where they would stay on the first floor overlooking the greenish lands of the Villa's landscape.

"How beautiful it is here, Onii-chan," his brother screeched.

"Yes Yuuki"

"After dropping the bags, let's scare that Baka." He clasped his hands together as if formulating a bad plan.

"Don't scare Kotoko," he ordered seriously.

"Why not, Onii-chan?" His brother's eyes fell on him.

"Because I don't want to hear his scared screams," he pretended to complain.

_And also because I don't like to see her scared, it's better when she smiles._

"She is very scandalous" He believed, despite being a terrible excuse. He no longer cared if his reasoning was slightly blocked, what mattered was Kotoko's heart. Nothing else.

"She is." He continued walking until he entered room 102 in the company of his brother.

A spacious and light-filled room greeted them, white colors with different shades close to cream. The smell of garden flowers was soft and gentle on the lungs, while the beds were a good size.

"Wow," his brother exclaimed, ecstatic with the place. "How beautiful, Onii-chan"

"Yes," he commented as he settled into the bed near the window.

Once settled in the room, they went in search of Kotoko without knowing where he might be in the Villa.

They passed through the lobby with the intention of asking about her, but were held back by an annoying presence: Sudou.

"Irie!" He called, glad to see him. "What brings you here? Ah! Aihara, right?"

"Sudou," he articulated irritably with his persistent presence.

"If you're looking for her, she's playing basketball with one of her friends" He pointed out the direction of the court, almost as if he had read her mind that he was only going because Kotoko was in that place. "Don't tell me that boy is your brother?"

"Yes, Yuuki" He introduced his brother seriously. "He's eleven"

"If it's a miniature copy of you" He laughed. His brother was embarrassed with such a compliment.

"Well, let's go" He announced with his haughty selfless presence.

"Wait." He held it back with some insistence. "Matsumoto will come"

"Take care of that" He snapped, pulling away from him in the company of his brother.

"Irie!"

They left in a hurry, striding along the right path to the basketball courts. Entering the courts, which only consisted of being two large pieces of land where a tennis court was located at the bottom of the basketball courts.

He found her immediately playing in her college team basketball pants. Blue color with white lines at the ends of the shorts. He played with his friend Nozomi, he seemed like a good influence and no threat to his other love rivals.

He looked much more cheerful than other times, moving freely without pressure around the court, struggling to beat the talented player who is Nozomi.

The boy's blond hair gleamed with the intensity of the sun, light breezes of his being floated as he moved across the court, bouncing the ball.

They seemed like a couple.

He came quickly, pushing away that silly new assumption for him. _Nozomi is not a threat to me, I am just making ideas._

"Kotoko!" He yelled wide and clear. "Oi!" She stopped taking the ball from Nozomi who was about to score. She froze at the sight of him, her eyes widening like light bulbs and her mouth open in fright.

"Na ... nao ... Naoki-kun!" She said, amazed to see him.

"Ah, Naoki!" Nozomi greeted nonchalantly. "What are you doing here? Are you coming to play with us?"

"Baka!" Yuuki waved his arms, his eyes lit to see her, running towards her in a frenzy. Upon reaching her, he gave her a push and a tongue stick out.

"The actor in tragedies" She sighed, recovering from surprise. She bent down to shake his younger brother's brown hair, and was undoubtedly envious that his brother was so freely touched. "What brings you here?" And how did they find out that I work here at the Villa?

"The mustache mister told us" Yuuki commented.

"Sudou-senpai" She boasted suddenly. "That man is crazy"

"Mom regrets not coming, but even so we both came" Said his brother with his hand on his chin.

"Oh I see" She added with interested eyes and as if it were lightning. "By the way, he's Nozomi Yuuki" She introduced him smilingly. "My friend"

"His name is the same as me, I am Irie Yuuki" The boy agreed.

"Don't tell me you're Naoki's brother" He expressed amazed to see Naoki's brother. He nodded confidently with his posture. "Impressive, I mean, I didn't expect Naoki to have a younger brother, but it sounds good." He winked.

"Naoki-kun, do you want to play with us?" She suggested holding the ball that was lying on the ground.

"Yes, go ahead, it will be fun" Nozomi encouraged him with a smile inviting him.

Seeing that the two eyes of the girl rested on him in a happy way, indicating that he trusted his decision and that he wanted to play with it, he liked it. He agreed.

They played for two hours straight in the intense sun, which despite the strong breeze from the air and the trees diminished the strength of the sun's ultraviolet rays.

He noticed that the game was better when he had an extra company that gave that punch to the game that they won. He liked Nozomi, not because he was a good player, but because he respected him and treated him condescendingly and that pleased him.

Playing with Kotoko never seemed so beautiful to him, until he saw her mischievous laughter that seduced him widely, causing him to let his guard down and fly through the air inside his enamored mind.

Accustomed to those sensations, love did not turn out to be so gross.


	42. Your beauty when you are sleeping

_"I spend my life imagining you this is not the time to be a coward"_

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.

.

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Being stunned by the heat was unpleasant, lying in his room in the afternoon, he noticed that the weather was dropping in temperature and this seemed better to him than the infernal heat that happened in the basketball game.

His younger brother slept overwhelmed by the solace that hit him despite having a fisherman's hat, but he was not exempt from the sun storm.

_This is unbearable._

He tilted while lying in bed, rambling on trivial issues such as the amount of sun he consumed, being that this bored him if he thought a lot about the weather. I seem a tone thinking like this, I should focus my thoughts on other things more interesting than the weather. That is the least.

He shook his head in frenzy, breathing his hands in relaxation. His mind was calm, his body was not. He needed freshness, air from outside, not from inside where sweat odors were concentrated.

He took a cold shower, cooling off from the overwhelming heat that suffocated and consumed him alive. He dressed in light clothing and wiped his brown hair ready to stretch his tired legs.

* * *

He went out for fresh air as the day was about to set in a clear and beautiful sunset full of orange and reddish tints away from the horizon. Focused on just walking, he left his brother taking a nap in the room where he was looking to relax before dinner and fall asleep.

He went up a bit taking an alternative path instead of going downhill, what he did not expect was to find a very interesting view, one that encouraged him to involuntarily approach the person who carelessly rested on the warm and tender ground surrounded by grass and shadow of a huge tree with a large crown of branches and greenish leaves.

There was Kotoko asleep with her hands clasped on her belly, her hair floating at the mercy of the wind, her eyelids delicately closed, revealing her long and smooth eyelashes, a sun hat resting her head lying directly against the grass .

In seconds he was glued to her, his lips fell to hers as a kind of magnetism that drew him directly, firmly and precisely to kiss him. A kiss to show how strong his love could be without measures.

As a result of his feelings, he kissed her as a sign of them. Wanting her feelings to reach her somehow, forgetting her intrigue and fear. That was left aside, just making contact with her was enough to feel warm and comfortable facing the world that consumed him alive.

Kotoko just gave him love and he received it.

This was his turn to give without expecting anything in return. Well yes, hope to get your heart in your hands and keep it safe forever.

The creaking of a branch brought him out of his reveries and the kiss he gave her, his Kotoko who slept peacefully in the grass.

He took his mouth from hers, to search for the source of the sound in the distance disturbed by being interrupted in such a blatant way.

He turned his head seeing that the noise had been his brother. What was it doing there? Wasn't he asleep?

He stared at him in horror with his act, his eyes wide and his face flushed with shame. Naoki motioned for him to keep quiet or he would make him pay to open his mouth.

Naoki took another route away from Kotoko, seeing that he was interrupted by his brother, he wanted to clear his mind before letting himself be carried away by the impulses of his heart that beat immensely inside his chest, jumping and flying with happiness. If this was called kissing, he wanted to do it all the time.

The beauty of Kotoko when sleeping captivated him every time he saw her, every time he felt the tranquility that radiated with his eyelids closed and his slow, slow breathing.

She was so adorable that it urged him to hold her as if she were his most precious possession and not let her slip from his grasp.

He wanted to give everyone, the things that made him up, the songs he liked to sing to them, all that he wanted to give him and more, just to see her smile.

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**P.S. **(Mention of the song "Nací para esto" by Gustavo Cerati)


	43. Losing you is the worst

After his feat of kissing Kotoko, sleeping in the room was troublesome because he had an urge to remove his blankets, put on a jacket, and run towards her in order to stay together.

He turned in different directions on the bed hoping to fall asleep at some point, get tired of moving and fall into sleep.

He snorted with anger that he couldn't fall asleep.

* * *

The next day, Matsumoto and his sister, Ayako, had arrived at the Villa in a red convertible around noon.

Both Ayako and Matsumoto instigated him with their insistence to get very close to him in order to conquer him, but it was clear that he wouldn't correspond to their affection.

Sudou suggested after lunchtime that they play couples looking for different places in the Villa and take a photo of the section with a yellow flag. The first team to end the game, they would give you free dinner.

The couples were decided by rock, paper or scissors.

He had to be with Ayako, Matsumoto with Sudou, Kotoko with Yuuki and Nozomi didn't wanted to play at all because the game seemed childish to him.

That Nozomi boy made him curious, he sounded very interesting for his taste and mature for his age.

"Oh Irie, how nice to be alone, don't you think?" Ayako flirted.

"I don't think so." He flinched at not twisting his arm.

"But you have a girlfriend?"

"No"

"Then I have a chance to win you over." She leaned back on his arm in instinct for possession.

"Please don't" He replied angrily, thinking about Kotoko and if she was doing the game well.

"Why? If you're so handsome and attractive" She sighed in love.

"I'm not interested in being conquered" He said dismissively.

_Well, just by Kotoko._

Ayako looked at him confused, almost suppressed.

"You mean that you're serious about someone?" She simply questioned, releasing the grip on his arm to walk alongside him.

"It's none of your business." He repressed his desire to answer "yes" but he didn't see it as necessary. As long as the number of suitors falls, things will be easier for him.

"I'll take it as a yes" She grumbled, assimilating the matter. "But I won't tell Matsumoto" She scoffed affably, put her hands up in the air and took the subject for granted.

He nodded politely, unconsciously letting out a sigh of relief.

_At least she is not as insistent as Matsumoto, she indeed is persistent._

They found almost all the yellow flags and took photos of the locations they asked to take, while he rambled on, half thinking about what he should do, he stumbled upon the hat Kotoko was wearing that day. A black felt hat with shades of dark blue. Kotoko.

What have happened?

They finished finding the flags with the audacity of the girl, Ayako, they were able to return back to the starting point, with him firmly holding the girl's hat in his grasp wanting to have a chance to smell it and remember her when he felt alone, but that was only his wishes for later. For now, put yourself in a position to check if everything was in order.

Arriving at the starting point, they noticed that they were the first to arrive and therefore the prize winners.

Nozomi was sprawled in a chair waiting for them to arrive, his head suspended in midair, using his long arms as a pillow in the chair's back, his legs wasted on the dirt floor, a thin red and yellow striped t-shirt, and shorts. Light brown, white casual sneakers.

"Oh," He sighed upon hearing her footsteps. "You are the first to arrive"

"Didn't Kotoko come back?" He approached with a hint of concern in his cold, monotonous voice. He looked at him with raised eyebrows, confused.

"How? But she hasn't returned, I haven't moved from here" He protested strangely. "What's with the question?" He rubbed the hat at his puzzled face.

"This"

"You mean she got lost" Nozomi concluded, looking increasingly concerned about Kotoko's situation. "Let's go get her" He exclaimed decidedly.

"Ayako" He said to her. "Stay here in case Kotoko comes back"

"Sure." She sat where Nozomi rested calmly as if the world were rolling in her favor. "Don't worry about it"

"Thanks." They both ran as if they came out freshly ejected from a gun.

* * *

"She couldn't have gone too far" Nozomi exasperated, puffed up walking up the trees with the excuse of being able to see better, although at first such a suggestion worked, at the time when the sunset was coming he couldn't see much.

"Knowing her, I don't think so" Naoki corrected. "She's very energetic, she must have walked farther away"

"You do know her" Nozomi complemented, running at his pace that seemed to lose control at any moment if he didn't find her before nightfall. "I have known her for more than five years, but sometimes it's not enough" He laughed nervously. Is it because of being out of his comfort zone that he was saying nonsense? Probably, Naoki said to himself.

"Right now, you're not carburing well." He cleared his throat, sweating like an elephant, stepping frantically on branches, and his palpitations increased with the passing of the evening, focusing away from the horizon. "We need to find her as soon as possible"

"And also your brother." He rubbed that important detail into his face. How could he forget that his brother was also with her? Because he cared about Kotoko more than anyone else in the world. This was not the time to blame himself, he was about to lose his composure if he didn't find her, he needed to see her and hug her as soon as possible. Remind her that as long as she exists, he wouldn't have to worry. "Don't tell me that Kotoko is more important"

How did he read his mind? So obvious was he?

He nodded involuntarily.

That girl is worth too much to be left alone with any scum.

"Kotoko!" He yelled at the top of his lungs. "Kotoko! Answer me!"

Nozomi looked at him in amazement with his feat.

"Kotoko! Answer! Here I am" He announced his presence strongly. "Kotoko!" He howled clearly and firmly. _Answer me Kotoko, I'll go crazy if you don't show up._

"Naoki-kun!" The girl's scream came from a few meters to the north.

The alarmed hunch impelled him to run faster than his companion who was meditating on the desperate screams he made in order to find her. Fortunately, screaming worked.

He found her squatting with his brother balling over her shoulder, both confined to the cold of dusk wrapped in a small brown blanket.

_The hell my thoughts_.

He took her in his arms, pulling her away from the grip of his younger brother who was still asleep. Caught between his arms and the girl's incredulous expression, he inhaled the sweet aroma making it soothing to his heart that was beating so hard that it seemed that he would die at that moment of the same fear of losing her.

_Do you feel it Kotoko? It's my heart beating for you, for believing that something bad happened to you._

"Don't scare me like that again" He proclaimed in a short voice.

"Naoki-kun"

"Please don't do it again." It sounded more like a plea than a scolding but that was the least of it. The important thing was to find her before dark.

Nozomi managed to arrive and looked disturbed at the scene of seeing them hugging on the grass at the root of a tree.

"Kotoko" He sighed, relieved to see her.

"Nozomi." She pulled away from Naoki, setting him aside. "Did you come too?" It was obvious, she was shocked by the scare.

"Yes, you gave me a good scare." He dropped to his knees in defeat, inhaling big breaths of fresh air in order to relax. "You always get in trouble, you have no remedy"

Suddenly, he saw that she hugged him again, hiding her head in his chest. An intense blush rose on his cheeks.

"Thanks for finding me" She murmured softly. He reciprocated the hug, without hesitation.

Naoki rested his head on hers, breathing in the air her body naturally radiated. He tightened his hold on her embrace, wrapping her whole over his body, noting how small and helpless she felt when she was around him.

"Next time, I'll be more careful" She assured.

"That's impossible" He joked, thinking that having the privilege of finding her first than anyone else, was a feat that will make her fall in love with him. "You always get in trouble even if you don't ask for it" He laughed nervously, a mechanism used to hide his terrible desire to cry from fear.

Releasing her, he saw that her face was slightly flushed. It was the first time he had looked at her in that state and that captivated him too much to want to let her go, he needed to make sure that it was for him that he became like that.

"Em, Kotoko" He spoke as carefully as he could.

"Nothing" She blurted altered. "Let's take Yuuki-kun before he wakes up"

Nozomi rushed to take the boy away using the force of his long arms, even more than Naoki's, he even looked like a professional swimmer and not a basketball player.

"I'll take him, Naoki, it's not a problem for me" He assured calmly. "Really"

"Well, I'll leave you" He admitted defeat, seeing how he carried him with care and caution.

_He is good with children,_ he thought.

"We have to get back now" He boasted hastily.

Naoki and Kotoko followed behind him, as they climbed the path of the dirt road drawn by a line a meter wide, almost impossible to see at night.

He was looking at her sideways, wanting to take her hand, but he noticed something that was out of place and caught his attention. She was silent, pensive in the area where they advanced on the back of extreme exhaustion. She looked overwhelmed by something and that intrigued him, she wanted to know the reason for her thoughts in case it was serious or something problematic. Whatever. He wanted to be her support.

* * *

After arriving and dining with the rest of the game participants, Yuuki was still asleep in his room, as if went missing was little trouble.

Naoki took the opportunity that he was in a safe place and went in search of Kotoko, who had said that she would stay in the campfire of one of the guests until it was extinguished.

He could see her sitting with her knees to her chest, hugging them with her small and thin arms, observing with intensity the fire that danced in the burned wood.

"Kotoko" He called her to have her attention.

She looked up seriously.

"Naoki-kun" She sighed broadly, resting his head on the hollow of his knees. "What brings you here? If it's already night"

"I was coming to see if you knew how to put out the fire" He said sarcastically, to which she laughed at that.

"Nice try" She grumbled, wrinkling her face.

"I just wanted to get out, okay?" He pretended to be important, taking a seat elegantly in his haughty demeanor, lowering his guard with her. "It's a good weather so as not to enjoy it"

"You're right." She laughed softly. "Although winter ones are better because you can put blankets on, instead I can't even use them here." She stretched her legs while stretching her arms to the ends. "Well, it doesn't matter, the stations take advantage of as place"

"I guess so" He leaned his body against the chair's back.

"I won't stop thanking you for what you did" She admitted happily, almost proud of his feat that same day. "It was incredible"

"It's not a big deal" He snapped with his face red from the flattery. "I just did what I had to do"

"But it was great!" She clapped happily, not ashamed to do so. "A whole feat from a film, I couldn't have gotten out of that fuss and you found me"

"Stop flattering me, it's annoying." He pretended annoyance, although inside he was ecstatic about it.

"Don't be so modest, laugh Naoki-kun." She placed two fingers on her cheeks and indicated a smile. "When you smile you look very attractive, more than you already are"

"I'm not going to do that" He complained, blushing more than he could. He was about to explode.

"I like it when you smile, you have a nice smile" She complied absent from his feelings towards her.

"Please don't go on." It sounded like a plea.

_Can't you see I'm holding back so I don't run to you and take you in my arms? Can't you see it's hard not to do it?_

"Don't continue with that" He ordered, taking courage from his insides to say it.

"Okay, I won't bother you." Dejectedly she leaned toward her knees, hiding her face between them.

"Kotoko, there is something that intrigues me" He weighed, rocking his tousled hair, directing his gaze towards the extinguishing fire. "Is there something bothering you?"

"What do you mean?" She questioned with a frown. "Is there something bothering me or what is bothering me?"

"If something's bothering you" He clarified, clearing his throat.

"Em, not that I know of." She pouted, confused even with her answer. "Should something be bothering me?"

"It's not that" He rectified, locking his voice that was behind with his thoughts. "It gave me the impression that there was something that doesn't leave you alone"

"Well, there is something" She commented carelessly, to which he set his alarms into action. "I need a place to do my practices"

_Was that what worried you?_ He sighed with relief, he thought that maybe something intrigued her and that didn't let her alone. _I am glad to hear._

"A place for your practices?" He repeated.

She nodded pouting.

"I'm worried I won't find a place to do them" She said at the expense of his intentions.

Immediately he thought of Pandai, his father's company, he was sure she would find something to do such as commercials.

"You can try Pandai" He suggested.

"Pandai?" Her eyes widened like light bulbs. "Hey, it's a good suggestion, I'll tell Oji-san"

"Dad will give you a chance" He assured with a firm voice.

"Excellent, Naoki-kun, you're great" She jumped out of the seat, in victory.

"You still haven't done anything" He protested mockingly.

"Whatever" She winced indignantly. "An achievement is an achievement" She asserted with raised eyebrows.

"As you say"

_Whatever it is to help you and see you smile is my privilege._


	44. Giving up my goals is my sentence

The way back was boring.

Naoki couldn't bear to be awake on the journey, yawning at every drop of guard when he recalled his stay at Villa Romance.

He was groggy when he imagined Kotoko hugging him, stuck like gum on his back, telling him how much she loved him.

How he wished that would happen.

He gave a heavy sigh of frustration, causing his brother to be shocked by his action.

"Onii-chan?"

"It's nothing" He muttered, proclaiming to silence himself if he didn't want to be evident with his feelings.

"Onii-chan!" His mother darted to revive them ecstatic to see them arrive.

"Mother" He greeted cold.

"How did it go?" She smirked.

"Good" He muttered seriously.

"Super good, we saw the Baka and her friend" Yuuki continued with the orbs of his eyes open. "Her friend is very funny, better than Ryo, who is very scandalous"

"Friend?" His mother made a gesture of confusion.

"Don't be alarmed" Naoki replied.

_Why do you tell her about Nozomi? Insolent tadpole_!

"It was supposed to be a few days off and" She caught herself before screaming. "Of action!"

"Zero action for you" He scoffed, feeling triumphant.

"Don't tell me you didn't do anything with Kotoko-chan." She looked more worried than upset.

"Absolutely"

_I kissed her asleep, but that's a secret for me and nobody else_. He boasted in his mind. _Yuuki is not so big as to understand the reason for the kiss, he will only be silent because if he tells someone about it, there will be no tomorrow for him._

His mother squealed in irritation at his behavior.

"How could you do nothing?" She yelled angrily.

"Because I didn't want to" He said simply.

"You are bad, Onii-chan." She pouted.

_If you only knew mother, if only you knew,_ he sighed ruefully.

"Nao-kun, welcome" His father greeted, coming down the stairs.

"Father" He greeted him with a sideways smile, to which his father was shocked by that gesture.

"Come on, let's talk" He said, recovering.

"Sure." He sounded positive despite not having made much progress with Kotoko.

Once settled in his father's study, they resumed the pending conversation.

"Tell me what you thought." He grouped his hands on his big belly, smiling at him.

"I want Kotoko to do her practices at Pandai" He snapped, taking his father by surprise.

"How?" He exclaimed. "But I wasn't talking about Kotoko-chan, I wanted to talk about you"

"That interests me to assure" he said as an order. "I want Kotoko to have a safe place to work and feel comfortable"

"I didn't know Kotoko-chan mattered so much to you" He sighed, puzzled by the scene.

Naoki blushed immediately, his gaze drifting momentarily to the floor.

"Well" He stuttered nervously.

"Okay, I will make sure that Kotoko-chan has a job at my company and we will send her to the corresponding area, the creativity area or the commercial area, where she could film one or another commercial of the company" He assured with his soft and confident voice, smiling pleased with the theme. "Now tell me the rest"

Naoki took a deep breath, realizing that it was time to reveal his desire.

"I want to be a doctor." He released that great weight that hovered him.

It took his father minutes to recover from the scare, a very intense and important confession of the chestnut, while he rubbed his fingers between them as a gesture of nervousness.

"Explain that to me, please" He narrated almost as a plea, a desperate and ephemeral one. "I don't understand"

"I want to save lives, dad, that is my vocation" Naoki expressed that from within. "I already took the transfer exam and I was accepted into the medical career; in fact, I already started my classes since spring"

"And why wasn't he aware of that?" He wanted to know, appalled. "Nao-kun, since when do you do things on your own?"

"It was a scream in the air that made me realize that I need this race, that I want to do it and I have given my best effort" He admitted feeling a hunch. "It's the first time that I want to do something on my own and succeed in it"

"It's a very difficult career, are you sure you want it?" He sounded undecided, his very gaze expressed it.

"Yes, definitely." He made a serious gesture, but sure.

"At least you would have warned me in advance of this change." He seemed overwhelmed with Naoki's decision. "It bothers me that you don't trust me, since I'm your father" He said disappointed, bowing his head sadly.

"I'm sorry." He bowed in reverence, but his father held him back.

"Don't do that," he denied. "And with the situation of the company I wanted you to help me, in short, I can do nothing about it but support you in your decision"

"What is the situation of the company?" He asked, intrigued.

"It's none of your business, Nao-kun" His father snapped, looking disturbed by the apparent talk between the two of them.

"Father, I'm interested" He demanded to know.

If he chose a career he liked without considering his father's wishes for the future, the least he could do was take an interest in his father's life.

In the strangest way, he was taken up by a groan from his father, putting his hand to his chest, leaning to the left side. The heart.

"Father?" He tried to tell him something, but it was late as soon as he saw him collapse on the ground in a rush. Naoki instead of paralyzing, ran to help him, taking advantage of his studies he acquired during the study period for the exam. He deftly positioned it in a way that the pain decreased slightly.

"Mother!" He yelled with a crash, trying with all his might not to panic. "Dad, you'll be fine, trust me." He saw that his father, amid the great pain he suffered, frankly agreed.

"Onii"

"Call an ambulance" He ordered as a desperate cry for help. His mother, therefore, paled when he saw his father collapsed on the ground, but he didn't despair in not obeying the orders of Naoki who tried to make his father move as little as possible. "Soon! Don't you see dad?"

"Yes." She picked up the home phone and dialed trembling as he punched each number.

Yuuki looked completely pale, stuttering and worried at the same time.

"Yuuki, don't panic, Dad will be fine" He assured within the atmosphere of tension that surrounded the three of them.

_This can't be happening._

* * *

Upon arrival at the hospital, the minutes of waiting added to the tension and nervousness about the Irie family, while at the same time being surprised to see Mr. Irie, the head of the family, in a vulnerable state. The worst pain that could happen, the worst catastrophe and on top of that the problem of the company that was going downhill.

Things couldn't get worse, but he didn't add that his relationship with Kotoko was wrong, if not, they were on good terms but he had not yet reached the peak where he wanted to be.

He shook his head, n_ow is not the time to think about my love life._

His mother was biting her nails in amazement.

"Mother, if you continue like this you will run out of nails"

"It doesn't matter, what matters is your father" She replied furiously with his comment.

She really was at the boiling point.

Yuuki was like an ice floe, not a blizzard caused him to move, even his position looked static.

He is the one who is having the worst time, especially he is a child and seeing his own father collapsed on the ground due to a heart attack must be the worst thing in the world.

Naoki was between sword and wall, a position unsuitable for a young man his age. At just twenty years old, he would have to take charge of the company in what his father improved. Heart attacks shouldn't be treated lightly and much less, let them pass as diseases of little concern, so he would return the favor his father did to him by respecting his decision as a medical student and going to work when it was not his career yearning.

He would sacrifice himself for the good of the company, even though they had not been given the results of his father's health.

The doctor appeared almost like a ghost, from how quickly he entered the waiting room.

"How is he?" His mother interrupted what the doctor was going to say.

"Mother, let the doctor speak" He said shaking his head. "Tell us, what is my father's condition?"

The doctor was the same one who treated Kotoko when she had appendicitis.

"Yes, well." He adjusted the small lenses, which drop on the pendulum of his nose. "The condition is not pleasant, moreover, it is worrying to say that he almost suffered from a massive heart attack, due to the immense amounts of triglycerides and cholesterol. The figures are alarming, so I recommend a lot of rest and a soft and balanced diet to prevent one of these collapses"

_So the situation is not the most optimal, yes, I imagine, my father eats worse than a pig and never takes care of himself._

Yuuki and his mother were slumped on the floor of the waiting room, pale and without signs of life.

Naoki rocked the hair of his brown hair, overwhelmed by the situation.

"I understand" He managed to say.

"By the way, I know it's none of my business, but how has the young lady been?" He was referring to Kotoko.

"In good condition" He commented. The impression he got was that the doctor did have a good memory, partly for remembering Kotoko after having spent quite some time since that disastrous event.

"And she's your girlfriend already?" He asked curiously. "I mean, you said last time that she wasn't."

"She isn't." He ducked his head downcast.

"Well, I know your father is in terrible shape, but" He cleared his throat before specifically approaching him. "Secure your place in the girl's heart"

He was gone in the blink of an eye.

_Even a doctor scolds me for my slowness, it is the last straw!_

He bumped into his head, frustrated even with himself for his lack of initiative.

_No, this is not the time to think about these trifles until I make sure that my father's company is in good condition_, otherwise he would not be brave enough to declare himself once and for all to Kotoko.

Before sunset, they were given the opportunity to go see his father.

He saw him resting like a cocoon, wrapped between the blankets and tired eyes, he was in a position to want to talk to Naoki.

"Let me speak to Nao-kun, excuse me for being rude, but it's necessary" He commented, in an overwhelmed voice.

"Honey, don't force yourself" His mother dissuaded.

"It's not that, it's nothing of the other world" He asserted tired.

Once his mother and Yuuki left, he took a seat in the visitors' chairs.

"What do you want to talk about?" He inquired with respect.

"Nao-kun, could you arrange to hire Kotoko-chan? I say my condition is that it's deplorable even if the doctors don't tell me, but I want you to take care of that matter until I improve" He asked quietly, intertwining his fingers.

"Sure, whatever you say." He accepted that condition.

"You said you wanted that and Kotoko-chan is important in the family." He looked proud to speak of her. "And can you ask Kotoko-chan if she can bring me the movie Back to the Future?"

"Yes, I will tell her"

* * *

Things didn't go according to his expectations, since when the Aihara heard of his father's event, they exploded in a sea of concern for wanting to visit him.

Shigeo was much more optimistic, despite being concerned.

Kotoko took it as a direct blow to the heart, it hurt to know that her Oji-san was in bad condition.

Naoki suppressed his selfish desires to want to hug her and tell her not to be mortified, and that as long as he was present, things would be on track.

He hated not being able to do anything and above all things, not being able to take her in his arms and comfort her as he should.

After a few days, he paid a visit to Pandai.

It had been years that he didn't set foot on the floors of his father's company, and that bothered him because he felt that those were not his directions.

His father's secretary greeted him politely, offering him a cup of coffee and the documents proving the collapse of the company.

"If we don't do something right away, we will be bankrupt" He said urged to do something about it. Naoki raised his hand to silence him.

He read the documents noting a decline in finances, the result of his father's unnecessary expenses having spoiled employees with meals included in their working hours._ Oh dad!_ He bumped into seeing the red figures on the paper.

The company had also not released a new product in what had been Pandai's six months of inactivity in the market, the product losses mean only one thing: Pandai will be bankrupt in less than a year.

He rubbed his forehead, overwhelmed that he had found out why his father looked tired, but he kept himself in line so they wouldn't notice.

"I see the situation, I am aware." He returned the documents in a subtle way. "Tomorrow we will start to solve this problem and we will have a new employee so don't be rude to her"

"But we need to see her file to see if she's qualified for the job"

"Shut up!" He raised his voice impatiently. "Don't talk about people you don't know, she is part of the family so treat her with respect, she is an excellent element for the company. I assure you that she has many ideas that will benefit the company"

"How can you assure me of that?" He sounded indecisive.

"Because she is an important person to me, if she goes through my judgment it means that she is in my total confidence"

"I see, then we will hire her" He stated, looking defeated at Naoki's coldness.

_Nobody judges Kotoko without knowing her, don't you see how adorable she is?_

_Well you don't know her, but if you did, see how adorable she is. And I don't plan to go to Pandai alone, I want to be accompanied._

If he sacrificed himself, at least he would take Kotoko with him, to keep him company and divert his tension to a favorable point.

"I need your details to make the call and let you know you're hired" The secretary siad.

"I take care of that"

The beginning of his sentence began with the left foot.

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**P.S. **This is the end of the second part, the third part will be called "The songs that define our love (3)"


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